Stormy Reception
by SpeedForceSpeedster
Summary: When the Vongola Base falls under attack and Gokudera Hayato is injured and taken captive by the enemy, the other members of Vongola take it upon themselves to ensure that he is returned safe and sound. But it's not as straightforward as it seems...
1. Chapter 1 Gokudera Hayato

**So this is my very first chapter on this wonderful website and I hope it's good enough. I want feedback, either negative or positive from people so dont be shy! I'm doing this to improve my writing so I'll take the good and the bad. There's some strong language on Gokudera's part in later chapters so I'm giving you a little warning of it now ^ ^**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Katekyo Hitman Reborn, otherwise they'd all be doing some pretty shonen-ai things :D**

**Enjoy!**

CHAPTER 1- Gokudera Hayato

The office room was strangely organised and tidy, not a single strand of hair out of place, a clear sign that the owner was meticulous and liked everything to be just so. The crimson walls were adorned with large antique bookcases holding hundreds of varying books, the well worn spine of each one hinting that they had been read countless times. A large billboard on the right hand side wall was plastered with an array of paper, seemingly data of some kind, held in place accurately and tidily by small skull shaped pins. The walls were covered with knowledge, whilst in the back of the room, a curtained window in it's shadow, stood a desk holding a small table lamp, a red laptop, a vast amount of paper and a silver picture frame containing images of a fond past.

Gokudera Hayato sat eleganty behind his desk, his posture prim and proper and his blue-grey eyes glued to one of the many reports handed to him by his men. His eyes skittered quickly over the page, and then stopped abruptly. He clicked his tongue, obviously annoyed, and adjusted his glasses which had fallen slightly down his fine nose. A grammatical error had immediately grasped his attention. In fact, the custom report was littered with them, one falling after another. One he could tolerate, but thirteen was simply unacceptable. The reports were to be concise and proper at all times...at least that was what he expected from the men. Most times it looked as though the men had not even grasped even the basic vocabulary of Japanese and Italian. It irked him. Being the right hand man of the tenth generation Vongola boss had taken a sufficient toll on Gokudera's personality. As a teenager he had been rash and reckless in almost every manner. But in five years he had changed. He was more serious than he had ever been, the responsibilities he had taken on as the right hand man meant he had to be. He didnt regret of course. As long as he was useful to the tenth boss he cared little for what he had to turn into, besides, he could think more rationally than before. He was an ever attacking, never resting but more reliable storm guardian. Still impulsive maybe, but he could think at three times the speed he used to...maybe it was all due to the passage of years, but at some point he had realised that it was necessary of him to mature. For the sake of his family.

The problem however lay in how dedicated to his work he was...

Gokudera stopped shuffling through the papers on his desk and momentarily closed his eyes. He found solace in the darkness, but knew that sooner or later he'd have to reopen them...after all, sleep was never far behind whenever he closed his beautiful green eyes these days. His workload had drastically increased in the last few weeks. There was talk of a suspected union among the enemy families, and those kind of rumours prompted a lot of investigative work. While Tsunayoshi Sawada was busy elsewhere, all of the paperwork had heaped onto his desk...and Gokudera had dutifully taken care of it. Requests from the Varia and such had to be dealt with as soon as possible...or Xanxus would have kicked up a momentous fuss. Gokudera found that as soon as he had finished one stack of paper, two more would always appear, resulting in exhaustion on his part. He had barely had any sleep, and it looked as if it were to be the same the following week. Just thinking about sleep caused a huge yawn to escape unrestrained from his pressed his fingers against his weary eyes, eager to get rid of the temptation of sleep, and jumped in his chair when he heard a deep voice echo from the doorway.

"I'd say that was a 10 on the yawn richter scale. I could practically feel the sleepiness from here."

Gokudera forced his eyes open and inched his head to look toward the door. Leaning against the doorframe, arms folded loosely, ever the picture of relaxation, was Yamamoto Takeshi. Scruffy hair, unruly suit, nonchalant attitude...it was him alright. As irritating as ever. They had known each other for about five years, and Gokudera accepted that they were comrades...and friends, but the man still annoyed him as much as the day they just met.

"What," Gokudera growled, the irritation almost too clear in his voice. As ever this only resulted in the other man grinning. Although it was more of an arrogant grin these days, not like the innocent one he always had all those years ago. Gokudera wasnt the only one in the family who had changed, but after all they had been through in five years it was to be expected.

"It was because your yawn was so loud."

Gokudera's silver brow twitched...after all this time Yamamoto was still playing the idiot.

"I meant what do you want...idiota".

Gokudera could feel his anger rising, a further sign of his weariness. He had learned to contain his anger, but this man could bring it out with ease each and every time, without fail.

Yamamoto continued to smile and eventually pushed himself off the doorframe, closing the open door with a foot. He strode casually into the room, as if he owned the place. Gokudera tried to hide his frustration as Yamamoto practically threw himself on HIS expensive couch and flicked through HIS book. He turned his attention back to his work as a distraction. The silence stretched out for a few minutes, broken occassionaly by the scratching of his pen, the sound of typing or the turning of a page from the book Yamamoto was leafing through. Eventually Yamamoto felt the need to break the imposed silence.

"Tsuna and Lambo are worried about you. And so am I..."

Gokudera didnt raise his head from his work but replied shortly.

"There's nothing to worry about".

Yamamoto sighed and placed the book down on the coffee table. He had known it wasnt going to be simple. Gokudera was as stubborn as he was hardworking.

" Hayato, you're exhausted. We can all tell. You've practically been falling asleep on your feet this past week. I mean we know you're dedicated and all but you're clearly pushing yourself too hard. Take a break. At least for a while. Please".

Gokudera could hear the concern in Yamamoto's voice. After all, even after five years Yamamoto rarely called him by his first name. Gokudera felt a slight twinge of guilt. He was making the tenth boss worry, and Lambo too.

He raised his eyes from the papers on his desk and turned to face Yamamoto. He cringed inwardly when he saw the look on the other man's usually cheerful face. A worried expression. Above all Gokudera hated to make his friends worry. He brushed his slender fingers through his soft hair and gave a loud sigh.

"Ok fine. I get it. If I'm making the Boss and the kid worry...

He rose slowly from his seat, breifly noting that his legs had gone slightly numb because of how long he had been seated at his desk, and strode towards the couch. He stopped in front of Yamamoto and gave him an irritated look as the Japanese man didnt catch the hint...or at least pretended not to. Yamamoto simply sat there looking puzzled. Gokudera groaned.

"Move it would you, moron. I'm taking a nap."

"When I said you needed some rest, I meant in your room...then again why dont you just rest on my lap?" Yamamoto joked with a widening grin. Yamamoto was surprised when a slight flush appeared on Gokudera's face. A huge contrast to how his face was usually so pale.

"Fuck off idiot. Stop talking bullshit and just move out of the way. Irritating bastard."

Yamamoto was pleased to hear the normal Gokudera, in comparison to the reserved man he had started to turn into. He had of course grown completely accustomed to Gokudera's foul language over the years. He pushed himself off the couch and sat down on Gokudera's desk chair. He watched Gokudera lay himself down on the couch and gave a slight sigh of relief. Of course he knew that bringing up Tsuna and Lambo would do the trick. Hayato was as loyal to Tsuna as ever, maybe more so, and had grown close to Lambo suddenly about a year and a half ago, however unexpected that may have seemed. His excuse for his sudden attachment to the young thunder guardian was that Lambo "isnt nearly as annoying as he used to be. So I can tolerate him now". Yamamoto had maintained though that Gokudera had always been close to the child, like how he had defended Lambo from Levi's attack five years ago. Gokudera had quite childishly denied it of course. He was a top rate tsundere that was for sure.

Within minutes of lying down on the couch Gokudera had fallen asleep. Breathing softly, his face completely relaxed, worry free for the first time in weeks. The years had fallen off Hayato as soon as he had fallen asleep, his brows had unfurrowed and he actually looked twenty again, as he should.

Yamamoto was once again astounded by how long Gokudera's lashes were as they brushed against his skin, and how fair he was, even though he had lived in Japan for five years. He had to resist the urge to brush his fingers against Gokudera's fine hair. But he could practically feel the softness from where he was sitting. A slight gust of wind from the open window distracted him from his strange line of thought, and he surpressed a shiver as the cold wind brushed up against him. He rose quietly from the chair and walked over to the window. He closed it gently. The last thing Gokudera needed was a cold on top of his exhaustion. Yamamoto saw him shiver and took his jacket off, ready to place it on top of the sleeping man.

Suddenly, a siren sounded from the distance, a momentous piercing shriek.


	2. Chapter 2 Tactical Errors

**And chapter two is up ^ ^**

**Thanks to all the responses I got from chapter 1!**

**I do not own the characters of KHR blah blah blah...enjoy!**

It was the alarm.

Gokudera bolted awake and looked at Yamamoto who had suddenly grown morose.

The Vongola headquarters was under attack.

Gokudera stumbled to his feet and headed briskly towards the door, Yamamoto following close behind. When he opened the door the shriek became considerably louder and there was sudden activity in the hallway. Men and women rushed about, some barely dressed, having just risen from their beds. Yamamoto signalled to a man he recognized in the crowd, who immediately rushed over.

"Do you know what's going on?"

The spectacled man shook his head. But his expression showed that he could probably guess.

"I'm afraid not. I just heard the alarm sound when I was coming out of our room."

"I see. Thanks. I need my sword. Chances are I'll probably need it. Will you make sure it's brought to the briefing room?"

Gokudera interrupted frantically.

"The Varia also need to be consulted. They should be in the I block preparing for their next mission. Tell them to come to the briefing room as soon as possible."

After replying with a "sure thing" the man rushed off, disappearing into the crowd.

Gokudera turned to run in the opposite direction, Yamamoto on his heels.

"I cant believe you dont carry your sword around with you. You've gotten complacent. You used to take that thing with you everywhere."

Yamamoto laughed despite the situation. Gokudera felt a smile tug at his lips and quickly got rid of it. It wasnt the time to be smiling like an idiot. He quickened his pace as they neared the briefing room. He came to an abrupt halt in front of two imposing doors and typed his complicated password into the keypad on the let the computer system take a quick retina scan and practically threw himself through when the doors groaned open. He and Yamamoto were the last of the guardians to arrive. They were greeted by an over-enthusiastic shout from the sun guardian.'

"What took you so long? You took an extremely long time to get here! The alarm's been screaming for a whole minute already!"

Gokudera gave him a cold glare. Another idiot who could irritate him.

"Shut up. It's not like we can fly. Besides, your room is like two doors away so dont act so superior when you only had to take 10 steps to get here!"

Yamamoto placed himself between the sun and storm guardians just in case the situation escalated. They couldnt really afford to fight at that moment.

"Now now, calm down guys. Hey Tsuna! What's going on?"

Gokudera visibly calmed and strode away from the sun guardian, heading towards his leader. Tsunayoshi Sawada seemed concerned. He was leaning against the long table, staring intently at the screens in front of him. Security cameras showing the whole grounds of the base. Gokudera was irked as he noted that one of the screens saw a very unconcerned Xanxus...napping on the balcony of his room.

Tsuna had also noticed it. He sighed heavily and then turned to face his guardians. His expression was grave. His normally youthful, cheerful features were dark. Whatever was going on, it was serious, that much was apparent.

"From what Mukuro gathered and what I've seen on the security footage it looks like we're under attack from both the Sergi and Urumeki families."

"Both?" Gokudera asked. "So the rumours are true...they've allied?"

Tsuna gave another sigh and rubbed his temple.

"It seems so, yeah. The Sergi are attacking from the northwest with what seems like 150 or so family members."

When there was a slight chuckle from the right hand side of the room, most of the guardians turned to face the person behind it, while Hibari Kyoya continued to lean against a wall,arms folded, completely uninterested it seemed.

Mukuro Rokudo sat at a distant chair, legs folded, and a wide smirk slapped onto his smug face. He continued to chuckle.

"What's so funny Rokudo?" Gokudera enquired, with a cold tone.

Mukuro's grin grew wider and his eyes were gleaming sinisterly.

"It's very, very interesting...on one hand is Sergi with a force of 150 men. Nowhere near our caliber of course but still nothing to take lightly...and then here comes the interesting part. Urumeki has brought with him a force of three men. Interesting isnt it?"

"So those three alone must be extremely strong!"

Mukuro aimed a nod in Ryohei Sasagawa's direction.

"Urumeki is far from stupid. He's as cunning as they come. If he only has three men with him, then we need to assume that they can fight with the strength of at least fifty men..."

Gokudera was interrupted by the cold, emotionless voice of Hibari Kyoya. His voice may have held no emotion but the other guardian's could sense his bloodlust and longing for anarchy.

"I dont care if they fight with the strength of a million men. I'll bite them all to death. I can take them by myself."

Tsuna stood upright and walked towards Gokudera and Yamamoto, patting a shaking Lambo on the head as he passed him. Lambo looked terrified.

"Some of us will have to take care of the Sergi Hibari. I'll leave that to you and Takeshi. Take some of the men. After that's done we'll rendevous at the fountain. Mukuro, I'd like you, Chrome and Lambo to escort Kyoko-chan and the other civilians to the safehouse. Chrome and Lambo, you stay and protect it with everything you've got. Mukuro, I want you to relay a message to Shimon for me afterward. You know which one. Meanwhile, Hayato and I will deal with Urumeki."

Tsuna's voice was confident. He had grown into a fine leader over the years, to protect his family and friends. He noted Mukuro, Chrome and Lambo's nods of co-operation. He also noted that Hibari looked less than pleased...although he only ever looked pleased while fighting and beating his enemy into a bloody pulp. He could already tell without looking that Yamamoto was on board with the plan. He only hoped Yamamoto could keep Hibari in line.

"Boss. The Varia should also be here momentarily,"Gokudera stated as he noticed that Xanxus had at some point left the balcony and was making his way to the briefing room. He didnt look amused, then again he rarely did.

"Yes".

Within moments, the door was groaning once again and the leader of the Varia strode in. He looked furious.

"Shut off that fucking shrieking Sawada."

"Yo Xanxus. Glad you could make it!" Ryohei quipped cheerfully.

Xanxus ignored him and continued looking at Tsuna. Even after five years he was no closer to showing due respect to the tenth boss.

Gokudera saw Yamamoto laugh softly and rolled his eyes.

"Fuck is going on, trash? This better be fucking worth my time"

Tsuna kept his cool even under the pressure of Xanxus' fiery gaze, something he had been unable to do just five years before.

"Please dont swear so much around Lambo. I need the Varia to take a message to the Cavallone. If we're under attack now they could be next. We need to make sure that Dino can be prepared for a surprise attack."

Gokudera saw Xanxus get even more agitated. He knew that playing messenger to the boss was as insulting as it got to a S-class group like the Varia. He was glad when Tsuna further explained his reasons.

"Mukuro uncovered the identities of at least 17 spies within the Cavallone. All of them belonging to Urumeki. We need someone of Varia quality to ensure that these spies dont get away. If they work under Urumeki...Dino will need all the help he can get. I'm sending you along to give a hand Ryohei, since you work best with the Varia".

Ryohei gave an energetic whoop as a reply but Xanxus stayed strangely silent. He simply turned on his heel and left the room. It was as close to an ok Tsuna was going to get from the near impossible man. Tsuna gave a heavy sigh and glanced at his right hand man. He noted the dark shadows under Gokudera's usually sparkling eyes. He didnt look any less tired than before. Gokudera noticed Tsuna's worried look and gave him a reassuring smile. This at least seemed to please Tsuna to some extent as he turned his gaze back to the other guardians without a single word.

"If no one has any objections then we can commence the defence measures. I expect everyone to keep in close contact throughout their respective missions. If anyone falls into trouble I want you to issue an SOS immediately, that goes for you too Hibari. No one in my family will be left on their own."

Tsuna was interrupted by a short rap on the door. Yamamoto, who was the closest, proceeded to open it. The lean bespectacled man he had encountered earlier in the hallway stood there panting, sweat gleaming on his brow. He held Yamamoto's katana in his hands and handed it over to it's owner.

"Thanks Irie. Appreciate it."

"No problem. Didnt like all the running though. Oh and I met Xanxus in the hallway...didnt look too happy when I gave him Hayato's instructions,"Irie Souichi panted before turning to look in Tsuna's direction.

Tsuna gave him a slight smile and beckoned him inside. Irie did so without hesitation, pushing the heavy doors shut after himself.

"Spanner and I set up the defence mechanism's on the front lawn and the roof. Those are the only ones responding to our computer system. Urumeki seems to have tampered with our machinery somehow. I left Spanner with Ginanini in the lab and told them to use passage 24y to escape if there's any need for it." Irie relayed calmly, his fingers raking through his wavy hair.

His hands were the only part of him to show his nervousness as they trembled ever so slightly.

Tsuna noticed it but said nothing. Instead he gave the other man a reassuring smile.

"Thank you Irie.'

'Boss', Gokudera interrupted,' they seem to be taking their time to enter the grounds. Doesnt it seem like they're waiting for something?"

Tsuna looked to his storm guardian and seemed to consider a few things He eventually shook his head. He was confused, his intuition usually hinted at a few theories, but this time he drew a grounds that Urumeki and Sergi had breached were a little more than a mile away, and they were making little if no progress toward the base itself. He was just about to continue pondering when Ryohei's voice cut in on his thoughts.

"Well that just means that we have a little trek to go on to reach them! Let's go already! Take advantage of their pace!" he shouted enthusiastically.

"For once I agree with the hyperactive fool,"Mukuro said in an almost sing song tone.

Tsuna seemed to gather his thoughts together and finally gave a nod of agreement.

"Alright. Hayato, you're with me. Everyone else, please stay on mission unless I say otherwise. We'll rendevouz at the second fountain when we're done. Good luck...and stay safe...and please try to keep the Varia in line Ryohei, that means no uneccessary casualties and straying off mission. We dont need a repeat of last month's incident."

Tsuna's gaze swept over his guardians, noting the confidence, eagerness and also fear (on Lambo's part). He gave them a confident smile and strode out of the room, Ryohei following closely at his heels before heading in the opposite direction. Gokudera made to follow Tsuna, when he was suddenly tugged at from behind. He turned to see who had restrained him. Lambo was shaking like a leaf, and he was grasping Gokudera's jacket desperately. He was only ten after all. Still a child living in a very adult world. Gokudera's gaze softened. He gave a short nod to Yamamoto who was hesitating slightly by the doorway. He understood the implied message and left swiftly, turning back to look just once.

As soon as Tsuna had given the go ahead Hibari had already disappeared. It was amazing how fast he moved when there was a battle to be fought. He was no less blood thirsty than when he was a child, he just hid it better. Mukuro on the other hand stood by patiently, waiting for Lambo to finish his business with Gokudera. As per usual, he had on a slight, satisfied smirk.

Gokudera ignored his presence and leaned down to Lambo's eye level. Lambo's lip was trembling slightly, and he looked as though he was about to cry. Gokudera gave his forehead a slight flick and Lambo jumped back in surprise, his small hand leaping to his forehead.

"Dont cry. Real men dont cry no matter how scared they are. They get up the strength to fight anyway, and that's what makes them braver than anyone else!"

Lambo sniffed weakly and wiped his eyes. He actually seemed to have gained confidence from those few words. Gokudera smiled and ruffled his hair gently. He then seemed to think of something. His hand wandered to the nape of his neck. He unfastened a silver chain that had been encircling his long neck. It wasnt anything extravagant. Just a small silver pendant he had bought on a whim. Although it was a simple design, he treasured it regardless. He held the pendant out to Lambo who stared at it mystified.

"Is it for me?" he asked meekly.

"Yeah. It's a good luck charm. It'll keep you safe when I'm not there to look after you. It's something very precious to me so you have to take care of it with your life! If I find even a scratch on it there'll be hell to pay! But I know you'll look after it for me, right?"

"Ok. I will. I'll take good care of it! Thanks Gokudera."

Gokudera gave his hair another quick ruffle and turned his attention to Mukuro. He gave him a look that could turn any other person to stone. Mukuro just smiled. He understood the hidden message perfectly.

"Dont worry. I'll take good care of the little calf. You have my word...if that means anything."

Gokudera turned on his heel, giving Lambo one last reassuring smile, and left. Only Mukuro heard his cold reply.

"You better."


	3. Chapter 3 Unpleasant Encounters

**So we are already here at chapter 3. I really need to stop writing these at three am...it seems that my lack of sleep is starting to show through my grammar lol. Again, many thanks for any feedback and review I've received, and thanks to a certain someone for pointing out that I spelled Sho-chan's name incorrectly *slaps self* TAT**

**Feel free to point out any stupid grammar mistakes I've made . Damn you laptop!**

**I do not own any of the characters in KHR but I do own Urumeki, Lupis and the fat one who has no official name as of yet :P**

CHAPTER 3- Unpleasant Encounters

Gokudera had to travel swiftly to catch up to Tsuna. He had probably already arrived to confront the intruders. Hibari was probably finished with his part in the mission already, and he trusted that Mukuro would be able to get the others to safety...after all Chrome would be by his side. He'd probably do everything in his power to protect his 'cute Nagi'. Creepy guy. He found his thoughts straying to Lambo and quickly shook his head. He had no time for distractions! He needed to reach the boss.

Gokudera turned a corner quickly, weaving a path through the panicking it was taking far too much time to maneuver a path through the waves of people. He headed left with the next turning, taking note that the crowds were beginning to disperse. The few people he encountered were all rushing towards the back of the base where one of the armouries were located. Gokudera implored them all to check the surrounding area for untoward presences... he was sure that Urumeki had more up his sleeve than they first thought. Urumeki had depended on cheap tricks for years after all. It was how his family had risen through the ranks so unexpectedly and ominously. At the beginning of the year the Urumeki family had been loan sharks at the most and then suddenly they had started assassinating their way to the top. And now it seemed they thought it was the Vongola's turn to fall.

'Not if I have anything to do about it' Gokudera thought to himself, unconsciously grinding his teeth.

The Vongola family worked following Primo's example of so many generations before, and Gokudera was damned if he'd let anything happen to the family Tsuna had fought so hard to protect for all these years.

He picked up his pace, turning here and there and momentarily considered using his disk to move quicker before dismissing the thought. 'Best to conserve energy' he thought to himself.

He found himself unconsciously rubbing his rings as he ran...he was apprehensive. He could feel that something was amiss.

Immediately after that thought had flowed into his mind his receiver burst into life. The static emitting from the communication device was a strange sign in itself. It had been constructed by Spanner...it was supposed to be faultless.

Gokudera ground to a halt,pushed the small earpiece in and listened closely. It was obviously Tsuna, but as for what he was saying...

'ATO...ET..OF...THERE...T'S...AP...RUME...NOT...ERE!...HE'S...N...E...ASE'

'Boss. I cant understand you. Boss!' Gokudera shouted into the small microphone.

Gokudera pressed the earphone closer to his ear in the hope Tsuna's message would be clearer, but it stayed the same static mess. But Tsuna's last word he heard loud and clear. It was a word that sent shivers down his back. He heard the word...

'TRAP'...and everything went quiet.

The alarm had been turned off. Forcibly.

That was what Tsuna had been saying.

He had been telling him to escape...because Urumeki and his men were already in the base.

His thoughts were interrupted by a painful scream. It was close-by. Gokudera steeled himself, mumbled a short apology to Tsuna and headed for the scream. Chances were that Tsuna was probably headed there himself by now...hopefully. It was the first order Gokudera had ignored for a while, but if it meant that he could take a few of Tsuna's opponents down before he got there then it would be sufficiently easier for his leader...and if there were any repercussions then he'd have to deal with them later when all this was settled.

The closer he got the more screams he heard, the screams of people he knew, worked with and cared about.

'Faster, faster' he mumbled to himself. Trying to will his legs to move faster as he heard a voice he recognised break out into a yell of pain.

He rounded the last corner quickly and faced them. Urumeki and two of his men. Gokudera's gaze was immediately fixed on the huge hand of one of Urumeki's men. He was a giant of a man, obviously strong...and in his mammoth grip was Spanner, grasping for breath,clawing at the hand which had glued itself to his neck. Gokudera didn't think. He launched himself at the large man, summoning Uri without hesitation. The large cat sensed the desperation in Gokudera, and for once didnt put up a fight. Instead he clawed at the man's face violently, causing him to scream in agony and drop Spanner to the floor. Gokudera followed up with a swift kick to the mans head. He heard the impact but didnt stop to check the damage. Instead he ran to Spanner, who was on his knees, coughing up a mixture of phlegm and blood. Gokudera grabbed his arm, pulled him urgently to his feet and then pushed him forward, causing him to stagger.

'GO!' Gokudera bellowed authoritatively, as he turned his back to Spanner and faced his enemies, Uri roaring vehemently by his side.

'But my resear...'

'I SAID GO! I CANT FIGHT THESE BASTARDS AND PROTECT YOU AT THE SAME TIME!'

Gokudera felt his eyes harden as he noted the look on Urumeki's other henchman, a bony middle aged man with a face like a vulture. He held a battered cane in his hand and Gokudera assumed that it was probably his weapon. The man's cold black eyes were gleaming and his tongue was strolling casually across what few yellow teeth he had left, as if he could taste blood in his mouth. He was itching for a fight. The swayed from side to side ominously...and all of a sudden he wasn't there anymore.

He'd disappeared.

No. He'd moved so fast Gokudera just hadn't seen him. He instinctively pushed Spanner away, and just in time too. A second later and Spanner would have been impaled. What Gokudera had thought to be a mere cane held a deadly blade concealed within. Gokudera had felt the impact of the old man's draw and noticed a small trickle of blood run down from his left eyebrow. The attack wasn't meant for him, but the force of the attack had struck him. This man was dangerous.

Gokudera noticed Spanner staggering away from the corner of his eye and felt a shred of relief.

"Spanner! When you get far enough use your radio to tell the Boss where I am! I have a feeling I cant take all these guys alone!"

He didn't receive a reply but he knew Spanner had heard him...now all he had to do was keep these guys occupied until reinforcements showed up. He started to turn his attention back to his skeletal opponent but turned swiftly to face Urumeki when he stepped forward and clicked his fingers loudly. His henchman returned swiftly to his side without a single word.

Urumeki, a smartly dressed, plain man could have just as easily been mistaken for a salesman. He seemed to have no redeeming features, nothing to mark him as a threat, disregarding his men. He seemed normal...until he smiled. His smile was sadistic and the corners of his thin lips curled up cruelly at both ends, making him seem like a Hyena that was toying with it's food before a kill. When he took two short strides forward, Gokudera raised his guard and summoned Uri to flank him. He wasnt taking any chances with this opponent. Something told him that Urumeki himself was the strongest of them all. However, Urumeki made no moves to get any closer, instead he just stopped and started talking. His voice sounded kind but the smile that accompanied his words was anything but.

"I have heard many, many wonderful things about you Signore Gokudera. Many, many, many, many, many wonderful, wonderful things. Vongola's finest mind and right hand of her Boss. A genius strategist, inventor etc. etc. Like I said, I've heard many won..."

"Yeah I get it. I'm fucking wonderful! Get to the fucking point or get fucking ready to fight. I'm not letting you get any further into this base!"

Gokudera had angrily interrupted, and Uri had accompanied his outburst with a sharp roar of his own, but Urumeki remained impassive. He actually seemed a little entertained. Gokudera was shocked when the man suddenly gave a raspy laugh.

"Yes, yes I have been informed of your short temper as well. Wonderful, wonderful. You are quite delightful. I could certainly use some of that charming enthusiasm by my side."

Gokudera immediately grasped the situation and gave an arrogant snort. Vongola's enemy was trying to recruit him? He laughed shortly and raised his middle finger. He hoped the message was clear enough.

"Screw you bastard! If you want some fucking enthusiasm then I suggest you buy a fucking puppy or something! Aint no way in hell I'm getting any nearer to you than is absolutely necessary. You seriously think I'd be so open to the idea of leaving Vongola and joining you? "

Urumeki stood silently for a minute and then sighed.

"So be it" he said, his tone slightly prickly.

The man moved back to his previous position and clicked his fingers once more.

"Lupis, finish him. Leave only his wonderful eyes unharmed."

The thin man stepped forward to fight once again, and Gokudera weighed his odds. The man's speed clearly outmatched his own but not necessarily his brain. If Gokudera could best him logically there was a chance that he could win, or at least delay him. There was one attack that could work, although it was risky...


	4. Chapter 4 Logical Thinking

**Oh God I'm really dreading putting this chapter up here D:**

**Here is my pathetic attempt at making up the new weapons and abilities of future Gokudera. What was I thinking lol. I dontknow if my ideas are going to come across easily so if you have any queries then feel free to bombard me with them XD**

**I don't know much Italian so I apologise if I get the phrasing incorrect or something**

**As usual I don't own the characters, or Yama would be an uke :P and any grammar mistakes you spot are all figments of your imagination! Thanks for reading and enjoy! (hopefully)**

CHAPTER 4- Logical Thinking

Just as soon as the bony man had leaped into his attack, Gokudera summoned his strength and called Uri to his front. He held his hands out as though he was reaching for something and bellowed out an order.

"URI! ASSALTO MARK 7!"

Uri leaped to attention and suddenly a bright red light began to encircle him. Lupis could feel the heat emanating from a distance and halted his attack quickly, he obviously did not know what to expect from this sudden occurrence.

A sudden burst of intensely bright light was so intense that Lupis was briefly stunned. His eyes blurred with the light and he staggered around slightly, sword drawn, trying to get his eyes focused once again. When his vision had finally cleared he stood face to face with a gigantic machine gun, with Gokudera smirking ever so slightly while gripping small handles at both sides.

"Surprise", Gokudera exclaimed smugly behind the huge gun. He couldn't suppress a cocky grin as he saw the bewildered look on his opponents face. He winked at Lupis, in a brief moment of mischievousness, and poised to attack.

Lupis jumped back as soon as Gokudera started firing in rapid succession. He briefly noted, while dodging the constant stream of attack, that each bullet fired was one of two different colours but had no chance to interpret the meaning. He was far too busy leaping about avoiding the deadly barrage of bullets.

The coloured bullets represented one of each guardian's attributes, attributes that Gokudera had access to. He had decided to use only two... after all he would need all the surprises he could afford in the coming battles.

Gokudera focused his massive attack on Lupis, who was desperately trying to avoid each bullet by either leaping away from them or slicing them with his sharp sword. He winced when Lupis threw a small stream of tiny blades at his left arm but still concentrated on his attack. He ignored the tiny blades protruding from his arm and concentrated a small red shield to cover each arm quickly. Gokudera could guess what Lupis would be aiming for, he knew what his opponent would surmise from the situation. Many opponents before him had underestimated one of Gokudera Hayato's ultimate defences, they thought they knew where the weakness lay but they had always been incorrect. Lupis proved no different. He avoided the bullets, still slicing away, and started to dodge them by rolling to the left.

He was going to attack Gokudera's back.

He rolled four times until he was directly facing Gokudera's back and started howling with piercing laughter, before he launched himself at the seemingly defenceless young man. He could not see the slight smile of delight on Gokudera's face as he heard his opponent move closer. When Lupis was less than five feet away Gokudera activated his counter attack. The Sistema C.A.I had been most useful to Gokudera in previous years, and a few tweaks had made it even more effective. His contact lenses could detect Lupis' every move even when he was behind him. Gokudera knew exactly where his opponent was without having to move an inch. Gokudera moved his fingers quickly over a practically see-through keyboard and a large disk appeared to protect his vulnerable back. Lupis had no time to move away when the attack burst forth, instead he was pierced with at least two pillars of hot light that erupted from the red disk. He screamed in agony from his injuries. His right arm was hanging by a grotesque strip of bubbling flesh, and he had a significant hole through his left shin. His ugly face was twisted due to the excruciating pain and he whimpered as he staggered about trying to hold his arm in place. His brief loss of control allowed Gokudera to turn quickly to face him and begin another abrupt attack.

Lupis could barely hobble away from the bullets that Gokudera fired and eventually the attacks found their target. Lupis suffered the searing heat of the sun bullet, and the deadly accuracy of a lightning bullet. Gokudera saved four bullets for his last defence, if he needed one. Before his opponent had the time to recuperate Gokudera had summoned the G Archery. He pulled back as far as it would go, marked the target as accurately as he could and let go with great force. The beam flew toward the struggling man at an amazing speed and hit him in his abdomen.

Lupis went down, and chances were that he wasn't going to get back up any time soon. When the smoke eventually cleared Gokudera was still standing. His relentless flurry of attacks had proved him the victor. He did not even notice that he had been holding his breath until he found himself struggling to breathe. He exhaled and drew in a deep breath. He was panting now. He thought that his opponent had barely touched him but Lupis had actually been able to hit Gokudera more than once without him even noticing.

Once the adrenaline of the fight wore off Gokudera felt the sharp pain. He looked down at his right leg and saw a huge gash. At some point during the intense fight Lupis had actually thrown his sword at Gokudera. However, in the precious milliseconds before the throw Lupis had been struck with the Lightning bullet, and had staggered with the hit. That move on Gokudera's part had probably saved his life. Even so, the wound was significant. It was bleeding profusely and dangerously close to his Peroneal artery. His arm was also covered in a stream of sticky blood due to Lupis' earlier attack, and refused to move as he wanted it to. He had received more damage than he had anticipated.

Lupis had been far stronger than he had given him credit for, to be able to break through his defence like that. But Gokudera was the one who had prevailed, and Lupis was dead. It wasn't the first man Gokudera had to kill in order to protect Vongola but it was the toughest opponent he had faced in months. Had it been a battle on strength alone the dead body on the floor could well have been his. Gokudera quickly gathered his thoughts and turned towards Urumeki and the other henchman. His pale eyes opened wide with alarm when he saw that Urumeki stood alone, with an eerie grin plastered on his face.

Before he had time to defend himself he was suddenly propelled backwards by a powerful fist to his chest. It seemed his second opponent had entered the fray...


	5. Chapter 5 Famiglia

**Ciao, Cosa c'e'? (Hello, what's going on) XD. I'm practicing my Italian lol. So here we are at chapter 5! I thought I'd never get this done because of my essays, which I really should concentrate on. As always, I miei amici (my friends) , send me reviews, complaints or even just a friendly little message (I appreciate them all). And by all means feel free to correct my BAD Italian XD.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Gokudera, Ryohei or Hibari *sigh* but I do own crazy Urumeki, fatso and ***** (spoiler XD) who would make the worst yaoi pairings in history lol.**

**ENJOY!**

Chapter 5- Famiglia

The force of the hit sent him flying backwards at an alarming speed and he landed awkwardly on his back. He felt jarred by the impact but struggled quickly back onto his feet, ignoring the sharp protests coming from his right leg. His leg felt like it was on fire but Gokudera tried not to concentrate on the pain and focused on his fight.

He had only seconds to even think before his large opponent struck again, this time going directly for Gokudera's injury. Gokudera successfully blocked at the last minute, but the impact of the blow numbed his arms, and forced him to his knees. He desperately tried to push the attack away, at the same time trying to avoid putting pressure on his right leg but soon saw that it was a risk he had to take and lashed out with his right knee, wincing with the pain but catching his opponent in his ribs regardless. The blow seemed to have minimal effect, as the large man practically brushed it off. He had however, stopped his attack and stepped backwards.

This gave Gokudera enough time to attempt a counterattack. He put all the force he could muster into a ferocious punch and struck. Hard.

The fat man reeled backwards from the power with a confused look on his face. It seemed that Gokudera was the first opponent in a while to be able to hit him with such brutality. Gokudera saw Urumeki's smile grow from the corner of his eye and steeled himself. The battle was probably far from over.

Gokudera had learned from his past battles that he was weak in close combat, although at first he was reluctant to admit it. He was lacking in that area the most, and over months of training had worked hard to improve that aspect of his fighting more than anything. It had involved heavy duels against the sun and even the cloud guardian on rare occasions but he had eventually improved more than he thought possible. Although he still couldn't contend physically with either Ryohei or Hibari his stamina had increased drastically and his strength had almost doubled. But of course where they depended mostly on brawn he relied on his logic and tactical thinking.

His logic had saved him in his last battle, and since his opponent this time around did not look to be the brightest man Gokudera had encountered he calculated that this battle had a 72% probability of ending in his victory. Not the greatest of odds, but better than what he expected in a battle against Urumeki's man.

However, there was no telling what kind of punishing attacks fatso had under his belt, so far the large man had so far been relying solely on his massive strength. Gokudera tried not to rule out any possibilities, after all Urumeki's third man was still unaccounted for. He could just as easily mount a surprise attack when Gokudera was least suspecting it.

Gokudera shook the wary thoughts from his mind and faced his large opponent, fists raised. He was going to at least try to defend himself from those punishing physical attacks for the time being, until the opportune moment arose for him to put his already established strategy into use.

The large man, more fat than muscular, seemed to view Gokudera's upraised fists as a challenge. A big grin spread across his sweaty face. He was obviously underestimating Gokudera. He plodded towards him, his layers of fat jiggling all over the place and launched a violent swing towards Gokudera's face.

Gokudera easily dodged and quickly rolled away until he was facing the fat man's back. He was strong, there could be no doubt of that, but he certainly was not agile or quick. Gokudera took the opportunity to retrieve a few sticks of dynamite from about his person, lit them and threw them at his practically defenceless opponent. As he heard the fat man scream in agony, a dreadful thought surfaced in his mind '_these bastards aren't strong enough. Something's up'_.

The two opponents weren't close to the level that Gokudera had expected of them as Urumeki's henchmen. The fights were practically easy. Gokudera focused his eyes on the big man, who was rolling about on the floor clutching his back and then his grey eyes drifted to the ringleader.

His smile was wider than ever, and his eyes were squinted with what seemed to be pleasure as he saw the agony that his man was in. There was no question that the sadist was enjoying himself. Gokudera clenched his fists and his brows scrunched up in anger. This man was enjoying the suffering of others like a kid would enjoy a day at the funfair. He was practically writhing in pleasure at the pain of a family member.

The fat man stopped rolling. More than the agonizing pain from the burns it was the shock that killed him. He wasn't the first to die from shock and he wouldn't be the last, but this time Gokudera _felt _his mistake. Knew that what he had done was wrong. This guy wasn't one of Urumeki's men, he was just a random henchman, and Gokudera had killed him.

_Damn! How could I have been so stupid?_

Gokudera walked towards the fat man's body and kneeled. He saw his eyes, glued into an agonizing gaze, and shut them gently with his fingers. He didn't know what kind of man he was, but Gokudera paid him respect regardless.

"Riposa in pace"…

Urumeki started laughing. As gleeful a laugh as Gokudera had ever heard. Gokudera was sickened by it, Urumeki was the leader of the family, he should care more for his men. But then again, he was evil.

Gokudera rose to his feet, wincing again with the pain, and turned to face Urumeki. His eyes were alight with fury, and he could feel his anger bubbling to the surface.

"Bastard", his voice was quiet at first but rose in volume when he continued "who the fuck do you think you are? You think this is fucking funny, getting off on your family member's pain like that? You fucking psycho. Stop sending people that can't get the job done and start doing your own dirty work, you fucking sadist."

Gokudera was practically shouting the last few words but Urumeki hardly seemed to register his anger. He just continued to smile eerily.

"Why should I continue to use people who do not live up to my expectations? All they are good for is that miniscule bit of entertainment they give me as they draw their last breath. But you? You give me shivers Signore Gokudera. Those spontaneous attacks of yours, how you can devise strategy after strategy in the blink of an eye. Wonderful. And the sharpness of your eyes as you go for the kill, a weapon in itself. I ask again, wont you lend me your power? You are such a waste here in this lair of weaklings."

Gokudera's eyes were hard. He said nothing for a few seconds and let the silence draw on. Eventually he let out a sigh and looked directly into the other man's seemingly black eyes.

"Listen to me you crazy bastard. Get it into your fucking skull that there is no way in hell that I will ever join you or even fucking consider it. I will only ever serve Sawada Tsunayoshi as long as I live...and these weaklings you talk about, I'd take any of them over your psychotic family members any day. My friends are strong...you just don't know what true strength is! The only weakling in this building right now is you Urumeki!"

Gokudera saw the shift immediately. In a split second Urumeki's whole face had transformed. The salesman had finally revealed himself to be a devil. His face turned hard, his eyes cold, and the way he stood made him seem far taller than he actually was. This was what he was truly like. Gokudera couldn't help but flinch inwardly when the Urumeki spoke once more. There was no feeling at all in his voice this time, his words were frighteningly monotonous.

"A shame. I do so like to keep interesting things alive...even after I have to break them for being disobedient. I will so enjoy watching every layer of skin being scraped off that beautiful face of yours, and your screaming alone will bring me vast amounts of pleasure. I will remember you for a long, long time Signore Gokudera. However, you are partly correct in assuming that I am weak. I leave the fighting to my son, but I don't believe you have met. Lucca!"

As soon as the name had escaped Urumeki's lips a man descended quickly to the ground. Gokudera hadn't even had time to figure out where he had leaped from before the man was beside his father.

_Things are about to get a little crazy in here,_ Gokudera thought to himself…

TO BE CONTINUED!

**I've always wanted Gokudera to say the Italian phrase 'Riposa in pace' (rest in peace) to his enemies. I think that reverting to his Italian side in victory is so cool. So fat man has died (nameless *sob) and I've introduced the character of Lucca, who I love.**

**Big things are a comin' so stick around! Next chapter could be delayed because of my mountain of essays. Sorry TAT**


	6. Chapter 6 Message

**Gosh, after a long 'vacation' from this story, it's finally here! I do apologize to all of you that were eagerly awaiting chapter 6, but I did have a ton of University exams and essay's to suffer through. Gomen! **

**This chapter focuses on Tsuna this time. Gokudera's back next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Reborn (unfortunately) but I do own crazy Urumeki and the mysterious 'monster'.**

**Enjoy!**

CHAPTER 6- MESSAGE

Tsunayoshi Sawada was furious. He was angry at _himself_. It wasn't the first time that a situation had taken a turn for the worse and it probably wouldn't be the last. But good people, _his _people, were suffering due to his miscalculation. Good people were _dying_ because of him. Straight after he had left the briefing room the feeling had grown, the feeling that somewhere in his plan there was a massive miscalculation. But he had ignored the sinking feeling in his gut, had chosen to brush it off as nerves. But now he recognised his mistake, and he had to rectify his actions at any cost.

As he wove a path through the intricate maze of corridors, using the powers of his gloves to maintain flight, he made sure to examine every single room that he encountered. Urumeki was in the base somewhere. He needed to be found, and quickly. Tsuna didn't want any more bloodshed, there had been far too much already. But there were too many rooms, too many corridors to check and so little time to do it.

Fifteen minutes had already passed since the alarm had sounded and the base was more or less empty. Tsuna had not seen anyone in his path for at least four minutes so he was surprised to see a tall figure coming towards him in the distance. He easily identified the figure as Spanner due to his rather unique taste in bright overalls and sighed from the relief that at least one of his friends was safe.

He was about to call out a greeting when he saw the expression on Spanner's face. It filled him with dread. Spanner's panicked expression was one that Tsuna had not seen often, but whenever he _did_ see it Tsuna could tell that something was truly wrong. Spanner's usually disinterested gaze had been replaced by an unnerving, constantly flickering one. His pupils looked dilated as his eyes swept anxiously from side to side. He was obviously afraid of something.

As he flew closer Tsuna saw how unsteady Spanner was on his feet, he was swaying slightly and he often stumbled clumsily over his own feet. He was seconds away from the other man when Tsuna saw Spanner suddenly pitch forward.

He was moments away from hitting the ground when Tsuna quickly and desperately extended an arm to catch him in the nick of time. He pulled Spanner to his feet gently and heard his painful gasps for breath. Every breath he took left an expression of intense pain on Spanner's face. He was badly hurt.

Spanner could barely support his own weight and Tsuna found that he had to exert more and more strength in keeping Spanner upright. He looked down at his friend's drooped head with a concerned expression. Tsuna momentarily supported the other man's weight before placing him gently against the wall to rest.

As Tsuna examined Spanner's body for any external injuries his gaze was immediately caught by the excruciating marks on his neck. Tsuna could easily identify a hand print on Spanner's pale neck, a huge hand print. Someone had tried, but failed, to strangle him. Tsuna clenched his fists, his nails digging into the flesh of his palms, and his expression was one of pure fury. Spanner noticed Tsuna's interest in his neck and saw the anger on the tenth boss' face. He knew it would hurt, but he had to tell the young man about Gokudera's one man defence measure…and the other incident. Spanner had escaped as Gokudera had instructed, but he had stumbled into something far worse.

A massacre.

His hands started to shake as he recalled the scene, he had never seen such a huge amount of carnage, so much blood. People he had worked with, shared meals with, laughed with…they had been murdered.

By a single man.

Spanner had been fortunate. The hooded man had not seen him as he lay behind the corpse of a fallen comrade, faking his own demise. Even if it was cowardly it was the only reason why Spanner was still alive.

He needed to tell Tsuna. He had to inform him that there was a far more dangerous enemy than they had first thought. And chances were that Gokudera was next in the line of fire…

Spanner raised a hand and grasped the sleeve of Tsuna's expensive suit. He pulled with all the strength he had until Tsuna realized that he wanted to whisper in his ear. Tsuna lowered his ear next to Spanner's mouth as the mechanic began to speak. Spanner's voice was strained and Tsuna could practically feel the pain as if it were his own, but he pushed the words out one after the other regardless.

Spanner tried to report the information in as few words as he could manage, struggling now and again.

"4th corridor, sector E. Gokudera and Urumeki. Wants help. Can't face them alone."

Spanner was suddenly overcome with a violent coughing fit. He covered his mouth with a hand and after the vicious attack passed pulled it away. Tsuna was alarmed to see traces of Spanner's blood mixed with the phlegm. Spanner on the other hand seemed uninterested, as though he had gotten used to seeing it. He wiped the substance on his overalls without hesitation and leaned back wearily against the wall. He looked exhausted and Tsuna could only guess as to how much pain he was in.

Tsuna made as if to stand but Spanner pulled at his sleeve once again. He managed to pull himself up off the wall slightly with the strength of his grip but Tsuna placed a hand against his back as a precaution. Tsuna moved closer once again. He had assumed that Spanner had said all he needed to say, but he was obviously wrong. He listened closely.

"Get to him…before that monster does…"

Spanner slumped forward and Tsuna caught him quickly. He was unconscious. Tsuna placed him back against the wall gently, careful not to aggravate his wounds and stood to his full height. He knew that before he could even begin to set off after Hayato he'd need to take care of Spanner.

Tsuna raised his right hand upward and focused his gaze on the large ring on his finger. He concentrated his will into the silver ring and after a few seconds a bright orange flame erupted from it. He had figured that the quickest way to get Spanner to safety rested on four feet, or paws rather.

"Hold on Spanner."

Tsuna concentrated his thoughts on the object that was fixed firmly to his belt, a small box like object, and quickly inserted his Vongola ring into the slot at the top. Gokudera was thus far the only family member that was able to summon their box animal without inserting the ring, he was a genius after all. Tsuna had been meaning to ask him to teach it to him, but time never seemed to be on their side. He made a small vow to himself that once this was all over he would insist that Gokudera teach him.

Tsuna focused his bright orange flame into the box and it burst open with an intense surge of light. When the light cleared, a mighty lion stood before Tsuna.

Natsu, or Nuts as he had come to be known in the base, had grown as much as Uri had, if not even more. The puny lion he had been before was nothing in comparison to the strong animal he had become, much like Tsuna himself. As Tsuna grew and evolved, so did Nuts.

Before Tsuna even had to say anything, Nuts instinctively knew why his master had summoned him. He lowered himself closer to the ground while Tsuna carefully pulled Spanner to his feet. He supported Spanner's weight and moved toward Nuts. He gently placed the mechanic on the large animal and stepped away. Nuts rose to his full height, Spanner safely on his back and gave a low growl as if to say that he understood the task at hand.

"Get him to the safe house safely Nuts. I'm counting on you."

Nuts gave a roar in answer and set off at a reasonable pace, careful not to provoke Spanner's injuries. Without his full speed it would take longer, but he could not risk injuring Spanner any further. Nuts glanced back once at his master a single time. The expression on his master's face practically made him tremble. At that moment, his master looked as fearsome as a lion himself.

**And there we have it. We end with a very scary Tsuna!**

**So don't hesitate to let me know what you think! I'm always eager to read your responses, be they good or bad! **

**Chapter 7 is on the way, as are a few other stories I'm working on. I'm looking forward to releasing one in particular so when you have the time and if you see it up give it a read and let me know what you think! Arigato Gozaimasu as usual! Ciao!**


	7. Chapter 7 Loyalty

**Dear Jesus it's been a while hasn't it. I cant apologize enough for the huge delay in bringing you this chapter but the past few months have been kind of hectic for me. I apologize to anyone that has been looking forward to this chapter but on the bright side I think it's a bit longer than usual! **

**I was straightening my hair the other day and thinking of this series when it struck me that I have the same hairstyle as future Gokudera lol. I cant believe I hadn't noticed it before.****Anyway, as always, I'd appreciate any kind of criticisms or compliments from my lovely fans about this particular chapter or the series itself. Enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: All I own from this series is Urumeki, his retarded henchmen and Lucca, everyone else belongs to Amano sensei.**

_Chapter 7- Loyalty_

Gokudera had never felt anything like it before, the sense of sheer power that emanated from the dark haired young man before him. It unnerved him, and left a sour taste in his mouth, his right hand even shook a little. It seemed as though his body was reacting to the presence of the other man even if his mind hadn't caught up yet. He was on edge and he had no idea why. One thing was for certain, Gokudera was far more intimidated of the son than he was of the father, even if at first glance he seemed as harmless as his father once did. Although it was doubtable whether Urumeki could actually call him his son in the first place. It was blatantly clear that he bore no actual blood relation to Urumeki himself, boasting an European countenance while his 'father' looked extremely Japanese. Lucca showed no signs of having any Asian genealogy whatsoever and Gokudera was a fair one to judge in that regards.

Gokudera studied his next opponent closely, searching for any visible weaknesses, any chinks in his armour. But his opponent's physique suggested that he was fit and very able; Gokudera could clearly see the outline of a toned body through small, bullet sized holes in his grey shirt. At least physically he seemed powerful. But his face registered nothing.

The man named Lucca looked blank, his expression was vacant, there was no sign of any emotion on his handsome face and his eyes were dull. Instead of looking like a warrior he almost looked like a lost child. However, Gokudera instinctively knew that this young man was not a normal opponent, that he was in an entirely different league to the other two he had faced before. He couldn't afford to go easy on this opponent. He recognized that if he wanted to stand a chance against this Lucca character then he would have to use absolutely everything he had. Or he would die.

As soon as the man had dropped to his father's side Gokudera had maintained eye contact, his gaze had never left his opponents lifeless blue eyes. Likewise, Lucca did the same and hadn't blinked since. He didn't know why, but Gokudera felt something as he stared into the eyes of his enemy. The unfocused gaze; the hesitant body language; his opponent almost looked scared of him. Gokudera recognised it all. It was all familiar to him. The way this Lucca carried himself, it was just like how Gokudera had been seven years ago. The years before he found solace in the Vongola family, when he had no one but himself. The expression that Lucca wore on his face was the same one he had years before, as if he had given up on everything.

Lucca did not flinch when his father suddenly clapped his hands together but Gokudera gave a slight jump. He cursed himself for reacting but steeled his gaze on Urumeki instead. As usual Urumeki's deep voice was chirpy, but the words that emerged from his thin smiling mouth were sinister.

"Master Gokudera, may I call you Hayato? Well my dear master Hayato, I would suggest that you surrender before that pretty face of yours is torn to shreds and that pale skin is peeled from your fine bones. Just a friendly suggestion of course."

Gokudera forced a laugh to hide his anxiety and spoke, his voice gaining volume with each word that passed his lips.

"Well, I'm not really the giving up type. I'd hate to disappoint your expectations you crazy fucker."

He saw Urumeki's eyes sharpen at his words but succeeded in not flinching. When Urumeki spoke again his tone was far from friendly and the sociable façade he had once used was gone.

"So be it."

Urumeki clicked his fingers authoritatively and the young man next to him gave a lethargic nod.

And suddenly disappeared.

The young man had vanished from where he had been standing before and had been replaced by what seemed like a burst of glittering white powder.

Gokudera anticipated an attack, although he had no way of knowing where his opponent would strike. Predicting a blow to his front Gokudera made to defend himself quickly. But before he even had the opportunity to protect himself he was flying backwards at an alarming velocity, the shock from the sudden blow to his abdomen clearly registering on his face. His opponent had, after all, thrown him off his feet at an unthinkable speed, even though he appeared no more muscular or agile than Gokudera himself.

Remembering the layout of the corridor Gokudera knew what was coming and steeled himself for the impact against the wall, making sure that his body would be able to suffer the blow with the least damage possible. As his slender body impacted with the wall time seemed to move slower and Gokudera could feel the bones breaking in his body, could feel every single break in succession. He felt at least two ribs break, maybe more, and could immediately tell that he'd dislocated his right shoulder and shattered his right wrist. The pain was immense and resonated throughout his body and the wounds from his previous battles only added to the agony that Gokudera experienced.

Bleeding profusely, battered and broken Gokudera fell motionless to the floor, and the debris from the shattered concrete wall fell with him engulfing his limp body…

* * *

Even though Hibari had only a few minutes head start Yamamoto still had trouble catching up. The years he had trained for baseball, all the track and field he had participated in to try and gain some speed, seemed to be insignificant whenever Hibari was involved. Yamamoto was quick, that was un-doubtable, but Hibari was always quicker. He'd asked for a few tips once. Hibari, of course, had just smirked and walked away. That was just the way he was after all. The occasions where Hibari did any favours for the other guardians were few and far between.

However, Hibari talked to the Vongola guardians more now than he had before, although he rarely had any kind words for anyone. He probably respected them all in his own way, or rather respected their own individual strength but his relationship with the other guardians could not be mistaken for friendship. He just wasn't that kind of person. A friendly Hibari would just be plain weird…

He shared a few words with the guardians now and again, but he only ever seemed to have conversations with the sun and storm guardians. Although more often than not he was pestered into conversation by Ryohei. With Gokudera it seemed different, He actually seemed remotely civil with Gokudera, using the term civil very lightly of course. They never went as far as chatting like friends would do but Hibari never seemed as snide with Gokudera as he was with the others, and when he was it was only to push Gokudera to be a stronger man. He almost treated him like an equal, perhaps something that started with the favour system they had developed years before, with Gokudera freeing Hibari from Mukuro's base. Yamamoto had lost track of who owed who at this point but doubted that they had. The system was probably one of the few ways that Gokudera, as the de facto leader of the guardians, was able to keep Hibari in check when Tsuna was busy elsewhere.

Hayato had certainly come a long way in a few years. The once rash, headstrong boy had been replaced by a commendable leader, someone who could now be depended on in Tsuna's absence. He kept the guardians in line as much as was humanly possible, and that was some feat considering the aloof persons under his authority. Mukuro and Hibari certainly hadn't made things easy for him over the years.

Gokudera had changed, and Yamamoto couldn't help but be saddened by it. The responsibilities of his position weighed heavily on Gokudera. Yamamoto had seen first hand the effect on his friend, how he would have a maximum of twenty-two hours sleep in two weeks and how he would often skip meals to finish his paperwork. But he never complained, not even once. He never showed weakness in front of the others.

Yamamoto was, in fact, the only person that he would show his weak moments to, the only person he complained to when things got hard. Yamamoto was touched that he would, it showed that Gokudera really did think of him as a comrade, and a friend; someone he could put his trust in and pour his heart out to. But it was hard to sit by and do nothing as one of his best friends struggled.

To make matters worse, that wasn't the only problem. Their friendship was changing into something strange and unfamiliar, it was for Yamamoto in any case.

He'd noticed it more and more lately, how he would stare at Gokudera's face for long periods of time, memorizing his every expression, or how on other days he would simply stare at the other man's lips and wonder how soft they were or what they would taste of. Whether they would taste like his cigarettes or the coffee he occasionally drank.

Yamamoto recognised the signs of course, he was no longer a child. He could tell that what he felt for Gokudera was more than friendship, that his concern for him was more than simply concern for a friend. There was no other explanation as to why he would feel so happy whenever Gokudera smiled and long to embrace him whenever he was feeling down.

He was attracted to him. Maybe he always had been. Even when they had first met a part of Yamamoto had thought that his friends brusque façade was cute. At that time he had assumed that what he felt for Gokudera went no further than respect or friendship, but he'd been wrong. He liked him. Maybe even loved him.

But Yamamoto had vowed to himself that he would not act upon his feelings, and that he would protect their friendship regardless of any extra feelings on his part. He wasn't fully content with the situation and he would always wish deep down in his heart for something more. But he was scared. Scared that if he were to act on impulse and confess, that nothing would ever be the same again, that Gokudera would never smile at him again and the closeness that had built up between them over the years would shatter.

Yamamoto shook his head to clear his sombre thoughts and tried to concentrate on the task ahead. He felt Hibari just ahead of him and tried to raise his pace a bit more. But it was pointless. By the time he arrived the enemies had all been taken care of by Hibari who was now lovingly wiping a vast amount of blood off his silver tonfas. Yamamoto admired Hibari's handiwork, noting that thankfully all the men still lived, and moved to his comrade's side. He grinned at the other man, who gave no reaction and then sighed resignedly.

"Not that I'm not glad you took care of them all. But you couldn't leave at least one guy for me Hibari?"

"I did…"

"Well what happened to him? Where is he?" Yamamoto asked, whirling around to look for the single enemy Hibari had supposedly left for him.

"I got tired of waiting for you so I took care of him. Maybe next time you won't keep me so long. Not that there was any purpose in you being here in the first place."

Yamamoto looked at Hibari for a moment and then laughed heartily, throwing his head back in amusement. His cheerful laughter was interrupted by his receiver as it crackled into life. Yamamoto spoke into his microphone before Tsuna had a chance to.

"Hey Tsuna, we're…I mean Hibari is all done her, so we'll be…"

Yamamoto was interrupted by Tsuna's panicked voice.

"Change of plans Takeshi! Urumeki is inside the base…and Spanner told me that Hayato's in there fighting them alone. I'm almost there but I may need your help, get here as fast as you can!"

"Got it." Yamamoto replied, his face and voice suddenly solemn.

His receiver went silent and Yamamoto immediately turned to Hibari who had no idea what Tsuna had just informed Yamamoto through his earpiece. But the alarmed look on Yamamoto's face piqued Hibari's curiosity, which his face must have shown. Yamamoto told him the details without hesitation and within seconds both men were running frantically over the Vongola grounds. Noting Hibari's own swift pace alongside his own Yamamoto's curiosity eventually got the better of him.

"Why are you so concerned Hibari? It's unlike you, no offence"

Hibari took a few moments to answer, but the answer he gave confirmed Yamamoto's suspicions.

"I owe him a favour. This makes it even.".

_TO BE CONTINUED_

**Ta da! Hibarin and Yamamo-chan cameo! You know, I never realised how much I like Hibarin before writing his part in this chapter. I really wanted to get his character right…but I still think he's too friendly here lol.**

**The next chapter is going to be intense and full of action which is unfortunate for me because I suck at writing action scenes, and should be out fairly soon I hope.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading (does anyone actually read this part?) and feel free to review and tell me what you like/dislike from the chapter/series.**

**Again sorry to anyone who's been eagerly waiting for this chapter (if there was anyone lol) and thanks for being so patient . God I suck. Ja Ne!**


	8. Chapter 8 Perseverance

**Geez, am I ever spoiling you people. My chapters keep getting longer and longer. At this rate chapter 15 will be about 10,000 words or something! But this is a long chapter simply because it has so much going on and many key things are introduced here so keep an eye out. And a new character is introduced! Ta Da!**

**So, as per usual, enjoy and feel free to review or send me messages telling me how good/bad this chapter is!**

**DISCLAIMER- I don't own the characters of KHR but I do own Urumeki, Lucca and Mystery character X!**

Chapter 8- Perseverance

When he woke up Gokudera's mind was groggy, his body numb all over, but luckily still whole. He could feel a heavy weight on top of his body and surmised that the wall had come crashing down shortly after himself. His body had hit it pretty hard after all, and he probably had the bruises to prove it.

Gokudera attempted to open one of his eyes slowly but winced and closed it again quickly when he felt a sharp sting even though it had barely opened. It felt as though someone was pricking his eyeball with a thousand sharp needles in succession. He tried the other eye, the lid sticky with the blood from the gash on his brow, and received the same painful reaction. It seemed as though small fragments from the wall had somehow found their way into his eyes. Gokudera clicked his tongue in annoyance but his mind was frantic, worrying intently about whether there would be any lasting damage . Now on top of being severely injured he was blind in addition. Just what he needed at such a crucial time. Lady Luck seemed to have finally abandoned him.

Calculating the exact weight on top of him Gokudera felt relieved. It wouldn't be too much of a strain on his body to move the rubble off his body. He at least had one working arm to shift the concrete pieces. He could only hope that while he was shifting the rubble his opponent wouldn't take that opportunity to strike him while he was down. He set to work slowly, careful to move key pieces first and eventually his arm broke through. Before he was able to shift another piece he felt the debris immediately above his head shift. It seemed that someone was helping to free him.

"I'm relieved that you're still breathing after that little accident Master Hayato. It wouldn't do to have you dead so easily after all."

Gokudera cringed. He couldn't say he was pleased to hear that particular voice once more, seemingly noisier than the last time he'd heard it due to his heightened hearing.

Concentrating on shifting the rocks slowly with his one free hand Gokudera regretfully bit back a snide reply. He had more pressing matters to attend to.

Eventually Lucca, working silently, freed his legs and Gokudera was able to sit upright, wincing with pain as he did so. He took a quick moment to consider why his enemy was so eagerly helping him, realizing that perhaps he wasn't a soulless robot who could only perform his father's commands as he had first assumed.

Gokudera almost jumped when he heard Urumeki's sharp voice emerge from the darkness once more.

"I believe that is enough kindness you've shown the enemy Lucca. Next time you are not to move without an order, am I understood? Now Master Hayato." The anger was apparent in the older man's voice and his calm expression did not remotely fool Gokudera.

"What is it now? Make it quick, I'm kind of busy here."

"Yes well. I am a patient man Master Hayato, and a merciful one when I choose. Therefore I will make you an offer one last time. Join me and live. Or refuse and die painfully by my son's hand. The choice is yours".

Gokudera sighed. It seemed that he wasn't getting through to Urumeki at all.

"I choose option 3- refuse and live. Seriously, how many times do I have to reject your offers for you to understand that I will _never _join your screwed up family. My place is right here. Now, I believe we were in the middle of something."

Gokudera rose to his feet slowly, debris falling away from his body. He was completely aware that his body was far from its best condition, felt the breaks and bruises along with the tang of blood on his torn lips. He'd taken heavy damage but miraculously succeeded in standing upright once more, hopefully looking far more impressive than he felt.

When Urumeki's shrill laugh rang out in the ruined hallway, it seemed as though it echoed forever, each repeat seemingly louder than the one before. It sounded like the cry of a lunatic. His laugh clearly emphasised how mad Urumeki really was. Gokudera suppressed a shudder. He tasted the strong metallic tang of blood in his mouth and spat. Even that small action proved painful. He wiped his mouth with his uninjured hand, cleared the smeared blood from his eyelids and attempted to open his eyes once more with no success. His limbs felt like jelly and his muscles screamed in unified protest. It was clear that his body couldn't take much more punishment but his mind was far too stubborn to give up, that's just the way he was.

Gokudera was surprised when a unfamiliar voice emerged from the darkness, a gentle, soothing voice. Lucca's voice. It was a strange occurrence but Gokudera saw it as a welcome alternative to listening to Urumeki's continued hysterical laughter. Gokudera, his hearing heightened due to his temporary blindness took note of the tone in Lucca's voice. His voice _was_ strangely gentle but more striking than that he actually sounded nervous. He even seemed to be pleading with Gokudera. All of a sudden he seemed far more human.

"Why are you still standing when you know you can't win? Wouldn't it be better to surrender quietly than to suffer like this?"

Despite his almost kind tone Gokudera was irked. He hated it when he was underestimated by an opponent. It just made him want to fight even harder, really push his limits. His reply was curt.

"Who the fuck said I can't win? Even if I can't win, you can bet your ass I'm going to die trying. I don't need any sympathy from the enemy. But if you want to do me a small favour, you could shut your fucking father up. His crazy giggling is giving me a fucking migraine over here."

Lucca gave no response, his eyes as dull as ever. However, Gokudera, temporarily blinded couldn't see the expression on his opponents face. If he could have seen him he would have taken particular note of the look on Lucca's face. Hesitant. Scared.

Ignoring the hysterical laughing of Urumeki, Gokudera raised a finger, asking for a time out. Lucca looked to his father who stopped laughing but amusedly nodded his consent, grin as wild as ever. Meanwhile, Gokudera used his uninjured hand to fish about in his ruined suit, searching through the pockets gently, careful not to aggravate his injuries. He finally came away with what he had been looking for. He held a cigarette in his fingers, blemished with dark spots of his blood.

He fished about in his pockets once more and swore under his breath when he realised that his silver lighter was back in his study. The one day where he actually needed it and he'd left it behind. Typical. Gokudera calmly thought of another lighting method.

He placed the cigarette between his bleeding lips and used his left hand to retrieve the Vongola ring from his injured right hand. He brought the ring to where he felt it impact with the cigarette and focused. Within seconds a bright red flame materialized and lit the cigarette. Gokudera then extinguished his flame and manoeuvred his ring into a position where he could slowly nudge it onto the index finger on his left hand with as little pain possible.

Gokudera took a long drag of his cigarette, relishing the bitter, ashy taste in his mouth. He couldn't remember the last time he had the time to light a cigarette. It had been a while since he had any time to himself after all.

Gokudera eventually felt it was time to test his eyes once more but received the same painful reaction. He sighed wearily. A difficult battle would be made so much harder by his inability to see his opponent. Regardless Gokudera moved his body to a fighting stance and he faced the direction where he had heard Lucca's voice emerge from before.

Gokudera was in agony, but he fought his dizziness and concentrated on maintaining the cocky grin on his face. He may as well look the part. When he spoke he made sure that he at least sounded confident. The stakes were against him, but if he managed to injure his opponent in any way it would be advantageous to whoever fought him afterwards.

"Ok, ready for round two daddy's boy?"

"Your act of bravado doesn't fool anyone Gokudera-san. But I'm rather intrigued as to why you fight so hard."

Again, Lucca acted in a way that seemed out of character. Had Gokudera been able to see he would have noticed Urumeki's thin eyebrows scrunch together, would have seen a look of pure annoyance on his usually calm face.

"Lucca. Keep your words to yourself. I did not bring you here to talk to the enemy. Now get the job done."

Urumeki sounded less than pleased. Gokudera took the opportunity to annoy him.

"He was talking to me. So why don't you stay out of this you crazy old man. You don't have the right to talk to him that way when all you do is stand there shouting orders at people instead of doing your own fucking dirty work. What fun is a fight when you don't take the opportunity to get to know the man you'll kill after all?"

Remembering that an opponent and ally from his past had said almost the same thing Gokudera smirked. He was getting sentimental if he was looking back fondly on his history with that particular guy.

It remained quiet after Gokudera's speech. The silence stretched between the three men in a way that was practically tangible. Then Gokudera heard the snap of Urumeki's fingers and he was flying once again. Although this time the impact of Lucca's blow was pitiful in comparison to the last. Though it caused some pain Lucca's hit did not seem to have added any serious new injuries. But he had lost his cigarette. And that was particularly irritating..

Thankfully Gokudera was still able to rise to his feet. Anticipating another blow Gokudera quickly summoned Uri to his side once more and abruptly became aware of how weary he really was. He could sense exactly how much of the dying will flames surrounded his friend. It was far from impressive. As it were, Uri might have looked impressive by Gokudera's side but in truth he was just as weary. But as stubborn as his master he refused to show how exhausted he was and gave out a ferocious roar.

Gokudera stood still, heart thumping and his vision dark. He only had Uri to rely on now, his last chance to make any kind of impact on his opponent. His legs were growing heavy, his breath coming in short ragged gasps. The pain and the blood loss was taking its toll on his already fatigued body.

"Let's do this Uri. You know what to do."

Uri gave a growl as a response and leaped to face Gokudera's front just as Lucca poised to attack his master. Uri roared and lashed out with a large claw but Lucca almost effortlessly moved away from his attack. Once more, this time with Lucca attacking Gokudera's seemingly defenceless back, Uri leaped into position with another growl. Repeating the action several times Urumeki eventually seemed to grow annoyed. Gokudera could hear him speaking between Uri's growls.

"For how long do you intend to have your cat defend you Master Hayato?"

Gokudera smirked arrogantly.

"Now that's where you're wrong asshole. I never brought Uri out as defence. Right now, at this very minute Uri is my eyes. He's just showing me exactly where to aim my attack!"

Gokudera heard Uri's growl once more and spun into action, his G Archery in hand. Mixing his storm and lightning flame into one he focused his energy in his weapon and released his energy in one furious outburst, calling Uri back and aiming directly towards where Uri's last growl had been heard. He practically felt the impact himself as his energy arrow hit Lucca square in the chest, and cringed as the other young man's piercing scream of pain echoed in his ears.

Gokudera felt his legs growing heavy and struggled to remain upright as his energy depleted. It all came down now to whether the attack had struck his opponents vitals. Judging by the gasps of pain coming from his opponent it did not seem so far fetched to assume that he had.

Hearing Urumeki's voice once more Gokudera steeled himself. But more than that the voice that cut itself over the darkness was Tsuna's, desperately shouting his name. He wasn't far. They could win this fight after all. Gokudera _had _stalled for enough time.

"It seems we'll have to cut this party a little short. Such a shame."

Urumeki, having heard Tsuna's voice up ahead clicked his tone and snapped his fingers. He seemed impatient.

"Hideaki."

With the snap a tall figure swathed in black material swiftly descended to the floor beside Urumeki. He cut a sinister image. Liquid that looked like blood dripped down the dark material of his clothing and gathered onto the floor. Worse still, it didn't seem to be his blood.

Gokudera, still blind, couldn't see the new enemy, but he could feel him. His blood lust was practically tangible and he reeked of blood and rotting corpses. He couldn't help but shiver. He had thought Lucca a tough opponent but the arrival of this man brought him out in a cold sweat and made his hands shiver uncontrollably. For the first time in many years, Gokudera felt as though he did not stand a chance. He knew that he was no match for this opponent as banged up as he was. Feeling Tsuna getting closer, now joined by both Yamamoto and, strangely enough, Hibari, Gokudera almost let his relief wash over him. Then he heard two words that made his blood run cold and he felt what colour was left drain from his face.

"Take him".

Before he had any time to defend himself he felt the sharp blow to the back of his neck and Gokudera pitched forward, unconscious, straight into the arms of the man called Hideaki. Feeling the other Vongola family members coming closer, Urumeki made to leave. After all, he already had what he needed. The whole attack on the Vongola headquarters, all of it was due to him. Gokudera Hayato, the one piece necessary to solve his puzzle.

* * *

Tsuna, Yamamoto and Hibari burst into the ruined hallway, weapons out, already anticipating a battle. But they came across no one. There was no sign of anyone. All that remained in the hallway was the odd spattering of blood, two corpses and half a cigarette, still burning away. Urumeki was gone and so was Gokudera.

TO BE CONTINUED

**Whew.! Poor Gokudera fought his butt off these last few chapters and was taken out with a single karate chop! He's tired and so many enemies keep popping up. It's like whack a mole out there! **

**You cant believe how thankful I am to see the back of battle scenes right now lol. Also I really had to resist having Yamamoto screaming a huge NOOOOOO at the end of this chapter XD. Oh the drama!**

**I really hope you guys noticed my Gamma reference in this chapter. I miss his character so I thought I'd just stick him in there! I feel that in this future they'd be drinking buddies or something.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading! Ja Ne!**


	9. Chapter 9 Despair

**Woo! It's been a while since I found myself typing out a Stormy Reception chapter. Things are heating up now. When I started this series I myself had no idea in which direction I'd end up going, I was just casually making it up as I went along. Now I'm proud to say that I have a plotline in mind and all planned out lol. This chapter isn't quite as eventful as recent ones and its concentrating on the characters you may have forgotten about and what they're up to. So without further rambling….**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the KHR characters- they all belong to Akira Amano sensei!**

CHAPTER 9- Despair

Lambo was apprehensive. Since the moment they had entered the safe house, a lengthy distance away from the main villa, he had been pacing the room nervously. He jumped fearfully at the odd explosion of gunfire that came from the villa and his pacing would be joined by intense nail chewing.

Mukuro sat on a wooden crate on the right hand side of the large room, arms crossed and his expression surprisingly vague, while Chrome looked at the pacing Lambo helplessly, unsure of what exactly to do to calm him down. She was well aware that the only people who could calm him down weren't actually present. I-pin was busy training with her master, Tsuna's mother was thankfully on vacation with his father and Tsuna and Gokudera were obviously busy elsewhere. She looked pleadingly towards Kyoko and Haru who were busy attending to some of the wounded personnel they had been able to save on their way to the safe house.

Kyoko Sasagawa smiled reassuringly at Chrome as if trying to tell her that Lambo would be fine on his own. Her cheerful smile hid her fear well. But she couldn't hide the slight tremble of her hands. Haru on the other hand, who hadn't noticed Chrome looking their way, looked almost angry as she bandaged the leg of another young woman. Chrome could almost guess as to what she was thinking. Haru had expressed her infuriation once before, had complained loudly about her role in things. As a headstrong young woman in a dangerous environment she had always felt as though what she had to give wasn't enough. She could never be as strong as Tsuna and his guardians, couldn't fight their battles with them. Haru never thought that she gave as much as she should, as it stood all she could do was watch from the sidelines as her friends fought deadly battles. Surprisingly, when she had first expressed these thoughts the one who admonished her was Gokudera.

He had pulled her determinedly from the room in such a manner that Haru was scared of what would follow. Gokudera had led her to an empty room and softly wiped away her tears of frustration with the sleeve of his suit and spoke to her in a gentle tone that was so rare coming from the usually abrasive young man.

"Look here you stupid idiot. _You_ may think that you're not doing anything of worth but nothing anybody does in Vongola is insignificant. Everyone has their own individual role to play, something they do better than anyone else. We will never ask you or Sasagawa to fight our battles for us, that's a given. But after a hard fight, coming back here and realising that we protected you and our family is what gives us the will to keep fighting. You don't need to throw punches to be fighting in a battle you know. Just cheering us on is more than enough. When we fight the whole family fights together, you included."

Haru had been shocked to say the least. She hadn't expected such a passionate outburst from Gokudera of all people. She would still have her doubts about her role in Vongola but in future she didn't express them again. She did what she could to make herself useful to her friends, including protecting Kyoko when no other was around to do so. Because Tsuna would break down without her by his side. A harsh truth for Haru but one she had been forced to accept more and more over the past years as Tsuna and Kyoko grew closer.

Haru, looked up from her patient and saw the panicky look on Chrome's usually calm face as she gestured her head toward Lambo. Haru saw him pacing, playing nervously with something silver in his hands as he did so.

"Lambo-kun."

He didn't hear her. She tried again, louder this time.

"Lambo!"

He stopped pacing and turned to face Haru. He looked on the verge of tears. Haru was momentarily surprised as she saw first hand Lambo's attachment to Gokudera. A few years ago this situation would have seemed impossible, but a lot had changed in five years. Gokudera had changed a lot in five years. He was gentler but far more serious. The extent to which he would fight for Vongola hadn't changed though and even after five whole years had passed he paid far too little attention to his own needs. On more than one occasion Haru had been forced to interrupt his paperwork sessions and force him to eat or sleep.

"Do you think you could help me over here for a while?"

Lambo said nothing, but gave a slight nod. He walked slowly to Haru's side. Behind him Chrome gave a smile of thanks and turned her attention to Mukuro who had been watching the whole scene quietly. His face was pensive.

Mukuro himself had been busily watching the whole situation through countless eyes around the base, using Vongola personnel or animals. Tsuna had allowed him beforehand to plant a link with countless members of the family. He only needed to nip them once with his trident to be able to reside in their bodies whenever he wished. It had of course only been allowed by the authorization of the people themselves, under Tsuna's watchful eye. A rather annoying condition. Mukuro wasn't used to having to ask permission to reside in someone's subconscious.

Chrome couldn't read the expression on Mukuro's face but she knew that something had obviously caught his interest.

"Mukuro-sama?"

He turned to face Chrome, smile ready on his face.

"Yes Nagi?"

"Did you see anything? what's happening in the base?"

Chrome took note that after her question Mukuro's eyes slowly drifted towards Lambo and then moved back to eventually focus on her own face.

"Kufufu. Honestly I'm sad to have missed such interesting events but we shouldn't discuss it in front of the boy. Pardon my intrusion dear Nagi."

As soon as the words had escaped his mouth Mukuro's voice rang inside her head. It seemed that whatever it was that Mukuro knew it couldn't be uttered in front of the others. At least not yet.

"What happened Mukuro-sama? Was someone hurt? Is boss alright?"

"Patience Nagi. Tsunayoshi-kun is uninjured. In fact he encountered very little enemy forces. Yamamoto-Takeshi and Hibari-Kyoya are also unscathed."

Chrome knew that Mukuro had deliberately left out his name so she could guess what was coming.

"Gokudera-san? What happened to him? Is he alive?"

"As far as I can tell he is alive. But severely injured. He fought commendably against rather dire odds. His final opponent was not someone he should have been able to defeat in his state. He truly is a fascinating man. Tsunayoshi draws such interesting characters to his side".

Something Mukuro had said earlier caught Chrome's attention.

"What do you mean as far as you can tell Mukuro-sama? Does that mean that Gokudera-san escaped your line of sight somehow?"

Chrome was surprised as Mukuro's facial expression turned serious. Something had affected him deeply.

"Urumeki took him. I still cant understand why. He showed a rather unhealthy interest in Gokudera-kun but I didn't get the impression that he would abduct him on the basis of interest alone. It's almost as though he _needed_ Gokudera-kun for some reason. Forgive me Nagi, I think I'll do one final sweep of the base. Excuse me."

Mukuro's voice left Chrome's mind and as she looked over to look at his body, his blank expression showed that his mind was elsewhere. As Chrome thought back on her discussion with Mukuro her eyes unconsciously fixed themselves on Lambo who was busy fetching more bandages for Haru and Kyoko. The news would crush him.

Less than three minutes after Mukuro had moved his mind elsewhere he was back. Chrome could only surmise that something had come up. She was about to ask him what was wrong when Mukuro himself spoke.

"I think its time I contacted Tsunayoshi-kun. We seem to have quite a precarious situation on our hands."

* * *

Tsuna, Yamamoto and Hibari were quiet. There wasn't much they could really say to each other in such a situation. Hibari seemed to be the only one that was still thinking clearly. He beckoned Hibird off his shoulder with an outstretched finger and whispered to it gently and within seconds the small yellow bird had taken flight. Tsuna watched the animal go and then turned to face Hibari.

"Do you think Hibird can track Hayato down?"

Hibari didn't answer. Instead he ignored Tsuna and skulked down the corridor. As Tsuna watched his retreating back he saw Hibari tighten his grip on his metal tonfas. For some reason he looked far more deadly than ever before, as though his failure to repay the favour to Gokudera added fuel to his already violent fire.

Hearing a dull thud to his right Tsuna quickly turned to face the source. Yamamoto had driven his fist into the wall. Hard. His fist was bloody and it shook with the impact of his blow. Head bowed against the wall, back slumped, Yamamoto looked the picture of despair. Tsuna wasn't sure what he could say to make him feel better, after all he felt the desolation himself. The disappointment of being so close to reaching Gokudera only for him to be taken away from them. They had taken his right hand man, his best friend, and Tsuna couldn't do anything to prevent it. If only they had been that tiny bit quicker.

They had won the battle, driven back the enemy, only to lose something far more precious.

Tsuna knew, however, that he had no time to wallow in his own self pity. He was the leader and he needed to stay level headed no matter how much he wanted to fall apart. They needed a plan right away, to safely retrieve Gokudera as quickly as possible.

Tsuna moved forward to Yamamoto's side and placed a firm hand on his drooped shoulder. He knew how much Gokudera meant to the other man, had seen it in his eyes as they followed Gokudera around the room and in the gentle smile directed at him when Gokudera's back was turned. Tsuna would have had to be blind or completely stupid not to have noticed that Yamamoto saw Gokudera as more than a close friend. But they had no time to waste.

"Takeshi we cant afford to spend time blaming ourselves. We need to regroup and figure out our next move."

Yamamoto raised his head wearily. He looked anguished and then angry.

"Why can I never protect him when it matters? What the fuck am I doing?"

Yamamoto was clearly at odds with himself. After all he only ever swore when he was furious. Tsuna made sure that when he spoke his voice was far calmer and authoritative than he was

"We'll get him back. But the more time we waste here the further away from us Hayato gets. But before that we need to relocate. The base has been compromised, its not safe here anymore. I'll get Hibari on the transmitter and tell him to clear out and I'll instruct Natsu to help the injured out…we'll come back for the dead once we think it's safe."

His voice croaked slightly at the word 'dead'. Tsuna had encountered death before, it came with the job, but seeing it in his own home was another thing completely. It reminded him that no matter how strong he became, he would never have power over life and death, the people around him would keep dying.

Without further hesitation Tsuna contacted Hibari and instructed him, ignoring his grumbles. Meanwhile Yamamoto stood apart from him with a steely gaze. _He_ was going to aid Gokudera. Alone if he had to.

A burst of static in his ears interrupted his thoughts and a voice, becoming gradually clearer, rang in his ears. It was Mukuro.

"Tsunayoshi-kun?"

"No. It's Takeshi here. "

"Oh. I suppose you'll do. I'm afraid we have a situation. Or rather you have."

"What? Spit it out."

"I'll accept that your tone of voice is due to Gokudera-kun's abduction so I'll excuse your rudeness this time. On to more pressing matters. You need to evacuate immediately."

Yamamoto felt chills run down the back of his spine. It was never a good sign whenever Mukuro sounded serious.

"Why? What have you found out".

"Urumeki may have taken something with him when he left but he also left a little present behind."

Yamamoto resisted the urge to state that Gokudera was not a 'something' and beckoned Tsuna, who had turned to watch him, to his side.

"Left what behind?"

Yamamoto instinctively knew the answer to his own question before Mukuro uttered a single word.

"I counted at least 12 explosive devices when I scoured the area, and that's probably not all of them. We have five minutes to evacuate the grounds or I'm afraid Gokudera-kun will have no choice but to establish his own rescue. I'll be evacuating the safe house now".

Yamamoto's earphone went silent. He looked across at Tsuna who had overheard everything. They had five minutes to get the survivors out of the villa before the explosives detonated and everything drowned in the ensuing inferno…

TO BE CONTINUED

**DUN DUN DUN! I had a bit of bother with this chapter at the beginning because I wrote about a character I didn't really like -Haru. If I was as useless as her I'd be questioning my own worth too. Plus it allowed me to play around more with how the others saw Gokudera. I hope that part made sense. **

**I also added Mukuro's trademark kufufu-ing in this chapter since one of you requested it (you know who you are ;D ). Glad I remembered to put that in.**

**On a more serious note I'm super looking forward to releasing the next chapter since it includes (in my opinion) some of the greatest characters! Guess who?**

**As usual send me comments and feedback if you so wish!**

**Mata ne!**


	10. Chapter 10 Varia

**Phew. It's finally out! I've made it to 10 chapters! Man, am I glad to finally be releasing this one. I apologise for the huge delays but as you probably know by now, University work will always take precedence over the stories (even though I'd much rather be writing these chapters than my essays).**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS FROM KHR. I COULDNT POSSIBLY CREATE SOMEONE AS COOL AS XANXUS BY MYSELF.**

CHAPTER 10

Ryohei Sasagawa was in hell. Technically he was in a private jet, but personally it felt as though he was flying straight to hell. And his journey was far from quiet. But the screams and shouts in the plane did not come from the tormented souls of those who had sinned and were heading for their infinite punishment. If anything Ryohei was the only tormented soul on the plane. The cause of all the shouts and screams- one simple word: Varia.

It was a strange sensation. Whenever Ryohei assisted the Varia on a mission, which he realized was becoming more and more frequent, he always felt as though he was a single mother taking her rowdy children on a day trip. For once he was not the loudest member of a group and suddenly he had all the responsibility of keeping the 'family' out of trouble.

All of a sudden he wished he was at the front with Lussuria, arguably the most sensible of them all, and not having to constantly separate Squalo, Fran and Bel or listen to Levi's sycophantic shouts to Xanxus who did absolutely nothing to control his men.

Xanxus, eyes shut, sat calmly and obliviously in his luxurious airplane seat, one long leg draped across the other and arms crossed. He looked the embodiment of authority but he was far from taking authoritative action. If anything it seemed as though he was paying so little attention to his men that they and their noise barely registered, like he was on the plane by himself. Ryohei was suddenly overcome with jealousy at Xanxus' capacity for ignoring noise.

Just as he was about to raise an objection toward the noise a whisky glass suddenly flew his way. Ryohei ducked instinctively and the glass smashed against the wall behind his head shattering into pieces, the content dripping down the side of the plane. The noise in the plane was already so loud that he barely heard the impact of the glass.

Ryohei sighed and rubbed his forehead with his fingers. The noise was doing nothing to help his migraine. Any other day and he'd probably be as rowdy as the others, or simply laughing at their antics, but as soon as he was airborne his head had started to throb painfully and the noise really was not helping.

_I wonder how Gokudera would handle this. Wait a minute… is this how we guardians are too? _

"That's an extremely depressing thought…" Ryohei said to himself dejectedly, his head drooping.

All of a sudden his respect for Gokudera had practically tripled. After all, some of the guardians themselves were not the most stable people, and it had to take some brains, not to mention patience, to keep on top of such unpredictable characters

Ryohei ducked once more as he saw a metal knife come speeding his way from the corner of his eye, He ignored his instinct to catch it in midair and his desire to throw it back in the direction it came from.

"VOOOOIIIIII. FUCK YOU DOING BEL?"

Squalo's loud voice boomed out in the midst of the noise, ringing painfully in Ryohei's ears. Ryohei turned to look at the space behind his seat and was alarmed to see that Squalo had his sword drawn and was pointing it towards Belphegor's smiling face. Fran meanwhile had tactically placed himself behind Squalo, ensuring that if any sharp blades came his way they would have to go through Squalo first. He may have been cowering behind the other man but it didn't't stop him from childishly pulling his tongue at Bel.

"Ushishishi. I do what I want because I'm a Prince."

Ryohei only needed to look at Fran to know what was coming next and before he could do anything to stop him...

"He's the Prince of idiots. All hail the Idiot prince! The only thing he never fakes is his own stupidity!"

Fran had knowingly crossed a dangerous line and even though Belphegor's eyes were hidden by his bangs Ryohei could feel that he was glaring with a serious intent to kill.

Thankfully, before Belphegor had the chance to initiate his deadly counterattack Lussuria's voice emerged from the speakers.

"Boss? Dino-san has established a line of communication with us, I need you in here."

Ryohei looked towards Xanxus whose eyes were now open and when the older man got up and made his way to the cockpit he followed. As Xanxus made no objection to him coming along Ryohei assumed that he either didn't't care if they had company or he simply didn't' acknowledge Ryohei' existence. Truthfully Ryohei believed it was more of a case of the latter.

Closing the door behind him with far more gusto than he should have, having finally been freed from the noise, Ryohei strode to Lussuria's side with Xanxus.

With a look of pleasant surprise Lussuria offered the plane radio to Xanxus who proceeded to look at it with a look of annoyance before snatching it away. As if it were a waste of time to use proper words Xanxus merely grunted into the radio to show that he was present.

"That annoyed grunt…if I'm not wrong…Xanxus?"

Dino's voice on the other side was tinged with amusement even though the sound of gunshots and explosions in the background were far from funny. Dino, obviously not expecting Xanxus to respond to him carried on.

"I'm glad we finally got through to you guys. We can't reach the base no matter how hard we try. They must be going through the same thing we are."

"What the fuck do you want fucking trash?"

Xanxus' voice shortly interrupted Dino, who interpreted it as a 'get on with it'.

"We've managed to hold out pretty well over here so far, and we captured some of the spies. They have some interesting information for you guys. Also, Adelheid from Shimon contacted us. It seems they're under attack by another branch of the Urumeki family- around 90 men or so. They may need a hand since three members are away on reconnaissance. We'd go ourselves but we have one hell of a party over here and I'd hate to leave it when it's just getting started.

Ryohei had been listening to Dino's words intently. The fact that Dino couldn't contact the Vongola base unnerved him immensely. Spanner's inventions didn't just stop working…the enemies had to be far more formidable than they had first expected.

Xanxus suddenly grunted and threw the radio at an unsuspecting Ryohei. Luckily he had good reflexes and caught it at the last minute.

Xanxus turned and made his way to the cabin door. He didn't so much as look back even when he heard Dino calling his name over the radio. But when he spoke his tone was angry.

"Lussuria. Head for Shimon first. We'll split up to take these trash on."

Without another word Xanxus strode out of the room.

Lussuria looked towards Ryohei and shrugged when he saw the puzzled look on his face. It was strange for Xanxus to show so much concern. It was as if he knew that there was more going on than what appeared on the surface.

"Dino-san? Did you hear?"

"Yeah. What the hell is going on with Xanxus? I think we can manage to hold on until you get here and I'll contact Shimon to let them know you're on your way."

Ryohei couldn't help but interrupt.

"Dino-san this is Sasagawa. Could you try and reach Vongola once more just in case? We'll do the same on our side"

"Sasagawa? Tsuna sent you as a babysitter again huh? Sure, I'll see what I can do over here to get in touch. But don't worry; I'm sure it's just a glitch or something…"

Ryohei heard the uncertainty in the other man's voice but said nothing. He too wanted it to be just a simple glitch, even if his gut was telling him otherwise.

"Hang in there Dino-san."

"Got it."

The radio went dead silent. Lussuria sighed and ran a neatly manicured hand through his long bangs. He pushed a small button next to the plane controls and plonked himself backwards. He sighed once more and then suddenly threw himself forward, startling Ryohei, and grabbed the transceiver from his hands.

"Whoa, what…"

Lussuria pressed a few more buttons next to the radio, motioned Ryohei to be quiet with a finger on his lips and listened. The radio crackled for a few seconds and then went deathly quiet. Ryohei shivered.

"Is that the radio link with the base?"

"Yes..".

"Something's extremely wrong over there…"

Lussuria nodded in agreement. Ryohei could tell that he was as concerned as himself.

"We best get these rescue missions over ASAP."

Ryohei, Xanxus and Belphegor fought for a mere ten minutes, and then it was all over. With no real effort on their part. They had felt that the three could get it done, and even without Xanxus really participating in the battle they were more than enough. The rest of the group had been dropped off just outside the Shimon base. With almost half of the Shimon guardians away on reconnaissance they needed the most support.

But the Cavallone family themselves were far from pushovers. In fact they were nearly done when their Vongola reinforcements had finally appeared, and they had miraculously taken no fatalities.

After the battle was finished Dino, with a shallow gash over one blond eyebrow, walked over to greet them, his smile not completely reaching his eyes. He gave Ryohei a hard thump on the back and nodded in Belphegor's general direction. However, Ryohei was surprised with his greeting to Xanxus, a surprisingly warm grin. But even more surprising was the hint of a smile tugging at Xanxus' own lips.

"Squalo didn't't come with you? A shame…I found our old yearbook you know."

Xanxus harrumphed impatiently, the faint trace of a smile now completely gone.

"Enough pleasantries. You said you had some information for me so spit it out."

Ryohei watched as Dino's face turned from cheerful to serious in a split second and gestured for the Vongola men to follow him.

"At first we weren't really sure what these guys were after. They just seemed to attack for no reason. We thought it was because we're your allies and they were trying to weaken you by getting at us. But then we learned some interesting information from one of the men we captured. Apparently they were looking for something. A key. Xanxus, they found out about the keys".

Ryohei saw Xanxus recoil slightly from the corner of his eye. Xanxus was acting strangely.

Ryohei wasn't used to seeing any other emotion rather than anger emerge from him. Whatever this key was, Xanxus seemed to know about it, and whatever it was for wasn't good.

However, before Ryohei could open his mouth let alone speak he was interrupted by a screech of loud static in his ears.

"OOOOOIIIIII, SASAGAWA! WHY THE FUCK ISNT XANXUS'S RADIO ON?"

Ryohei winced in pain. Squalo was loud in person, but over the transmitter he seemed even louder. He hadn't even thought that could be possible.

"TONE IT DOWN. YOU'RE EXTREMELY LOUD SQUALO!"

"AND YOU'RE NOT? FUCKING SHITTY KID!"

Before they could go any further with their shouting contest Xanxus suddenly yanked the earpieces from Ryohei's ears and inserted them into his own. As he heard Squalo's overenthusiastic voice Xanxus's face seemed to degrade into several stages of annoyance over the following seconds. Xanxus soon followed suit with his own shouts.

"BE QUIET YOU FUCKING TRASH! Now tell me everything. Leave out a single detail and I'll fucking decimate you."

"Xanxus? I told you to leave your transmitter on! We've got a fucking serious problem here! OIIIIIIIII Lussuria. Fuck you doing?"

Ryohei heard Squalo's voice get quieter and quieter. He assumed that, much as Xanxus had done to him a few minutes earlier, Lussuria had yanked the radio from Squalo.

"Boss. It's Lussuria. We got the job done over here. They'd already got a lot done before we arrived. But something is strange, boss. They were clearly here looking for something."

Xanxus' face showed such an intense anger that Ryohei was momentarily stunned. What was it for him to get so angry over?

"Was it the key?"

The following silence was almost tangible, and then Lussuria spoke once more.

"I would assume so, boss. They completely wrecked the place looking for something. Lucky _he _was smart enough to anticipate something like this".

"Fuck! Finish your shit and get ready to head out. We'll meet back at the base."

"Yes boss!"

The radio went silent.

The silence stretched. No one moved for at least a minute and then Xanxus suddenly threw the earphones back towards Ryohei, who caught them immediately that time, and turned on his heels. Belphegor followed close behind, his face surprisingly serious.

Ryohei meanwhile turned to face Dino, aware that he couldn't take too long to join his comrades. He was the only one of the three of them that could fly the plane after all.

He extended his hand towards Dino, who shook it firmly.

"Thanks for the help Sasagawa."

Ryohei couldn't help but laugh. After all, when they had arrived much of the fighting was already finished.

"I don't know what kind of help we were but I guess you're welcome. But we should be thanking you guys too, it seems that you gave us some extremely valuable information."

Dino looked back over his shoulder at the Cavallone base, his expression filled with regret.

"We need to be more careful from now on. We can't let these bastards get the keys…"

Ryohei was about to question Dino about the nature of the keys when Xanxus' angry shouts boomed from a few yards away. Ryohei sighed, nodded to Dino and somewhat dejectedly made his way to Xanxus' side. He couldn't afford to make Xanxus any angrier than he needed to be after all. Realizing that he had just missed the chance to learn about the keys from Dino Ryohei made it his mission to learn about them from Xanxus on the plane. Even if it killed him. Which was a frightening possibility where Xanxus was involved.

Raising a single hand in farewell behind him to Dino's general direction, Ryohei boarded the Vongola jet, eager to learn about the keys but even more eager to get home to the base. That niggling feeling in his gut still hadn't left him; he felt that something bad had happened….and even more worrisome, Ryohei's instincts were almost always right.

The plane was almost eerily quiet without the rest of the Varia members, and Ryohei almost wished that they were there to distract his thoughts by making their usual racket. Almost.

As they got closer and closer to the base Ryohei's initial desire to know about the keys was overcome by his own nervousness. He didn't feel that something was wrong anymore, he _knew _something was.

Realising that he was far too preoccupied to pilot the plane safely he set it on auto-pilot and sat back, biting his nails nervously. He was worried about his sister. He knew that Tsuna would make sure that she was safe, but he couldn't help but be worried. It's what older siblings did after all.

When he saw the outline of the base in the distance Ryohei was instantly relieved of some of his worries. It was still in one piece.

" Phew…"Ryohei was inches away from deactivating auto-pilot to get ready to land when he saw it from the corner of his eye.

A sudden eruption of flame spurted through the roof of the Vongola base, followed by another, and then another.

Within a frame of only ten seconds the Vongola base had been completely overcome by a cacophony of violent explosions…

To Be Continued

**So as I mentioned in chapter 9 (so long ago lol) this chapter includes some of my favourite characters! Ryohei and The Varia! (although I don't care for Levi much does anyone lol?).**

**God I love Xanxus! He's the epitome of cool. I feel cool just writing about him lol :D (and you'll be glad to know that this wont be the last you see of the Varia!) Gokudera and Xanxus will always have a special place reserved in my fan girl heart.**

**Man I really hope this story isn't getting too predictable…**

**Chapter 11 won't be long now. I promise! Ciao x**


	11. Chapter 11 Madness

**Bwahahaha! No, your eyes do not deceive you my friends! I have indeed released TWO chapters of ASR on the same day! My gift to you for all the delays recently. Unfortunately compared to the other chapters it's a little short but its better than nothing right! **

**DISCLAIMES: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS OF KHR BUT I DO OWN URUMEKI, HIDEAKI AND LUCCA.**

CHAPTER 11

Urumeki was livid. His plan had failed. He _had_ successfully managed to abduct Gokudera from right under the Vongola leader's nose; that he was more than pleased with. But he had obviously underestimated the tenacity of the Vongola storm guardian. Gokudera Hayato, a heavily injured Gokudera Hayato at that, had managed to defeat one of Urumeki's strongest men. Gokudera was not supposed to have been able to defeat Lucca, but against all odds, he had. That had not been part of the plan, and Urumeki despised it when things did not go according to his plan. The last time that had happened, more than a dozen of his men had suffered for it, whether they had anything to do with the failure or not.

But that wasn't the only reason for his rage. His raids on the Vongola allies' bases had come up empty. Over 160 men in total had entered Shimon and Cavallone and not a single one of them had returned to him. Not a single man had returned to present him with the objects he had spent four years investigating. The keys were still lost to him, and he had reason to believe that it was all due to _them. _They were the only ones he could think of that could manage to hide them so well. Gokudera Hayato and the arcobaleno Reborn. They must have worked together to make sure that Urumeki and no one else would ever get their hands on the keys.

Urumeki knew that Vongola spies had been investigating him, _that_ they could not hide from him. But he had no idea that their investigation had been so successful. Either they had somehow manage to overhear his ambitions or Gokudera Hayato was a frighteningly perceptive man. Urumeki had no trouble believing that the young man had anticipated his attack and planned his own countermeasures beforehand to defend Vongola and its secrets. Gokudera Hayato's foresight was startling, his preparations meticulous to the point of obsession.

Suddenly, without any warning, Urumeki's eyes opened wide, his pupils dilated and his tongue habitually brushed over his thin lips. With each passing second he looked more and more psychologically unstable.

Urumeki was livid, and he was quickly losing control over his emotions. All the things he had kept inside, those feelings of desire for wanton destruction that he kept closed away in his mind, were threatening to break loose. All because of a single man.

"Hayato Gokudera! I'll rip his skin from his face. I'll scraped the flesh from his bones and crush his bones in a vice….I'll…I'll."

He no longer wanted to tempt Gokudera over to his side, now he simply wanted to see the light of life disappear from his crystal-clear eyes, he wanted to be the one to personally destroy him. He wanted him dead. But not before he suffered, and not before he told him everything that Urumeki needed to know.

Suddenly Urumeki threw his head back and burst out laughing. His loud laughter echoed around his office. He was in hysterics and clawing at his own face with his neatly manicured nails. He didn't stop even when he felt drops of blood cascade down the side of his face.

Just the thought of killing Gokudera, imagining himself breaking that tender neck of his or pressing a dagger into his heart, was enough to immediately fill him with pleasure. He couldn't wait. Or perhaps he'd draw the Vongola boss to him and then kill him in front of Gokudera's eyes. Or that other guardian. The rain guardian. His spies had mentioned that Gokudera and him were particularly close.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! That's it! Perfect, perfect, perfect! Suffer, suffer, suffer! I'll make you suffer Gokudera Hayato. You can watch them all die, one by one by one by one! And then I'll kill you too!"

Urumeki threw his head back with laughter once more, and the blood from the self-inflicted wounds on his face poured down his neck, staining the white collar of his shirt.

When he eventually silenced his laughter and looked down at his blood stained fingers an expression of complete confusion passed over his face, as though he had no recollection of tearing at his own face. Urumeki calmly searched in his trouser pocket for his handkerchief. After he had the pure white cloth in his blood stained hands he dabbed calmly at his facial injuries, not wincing even once. It seemed as though he didn't even register the pain.

Still pressing his handkerchief against the wounds Urumeki used his free hand to pick up the telephone handset from his antique desk, a replica of a desk taken from the chambers of King Louis XIII of France.

Urumeki dialled a number on the keypad and waited for only a few seconds before his call was answered. He addressed the person on the receiving end of the call, his voice calm once more.

"Find Hideaki and inform him that I wish to see him. Immediately."

"Yes Master."

Urumeki, seemingly satisfied, hung up the phone and moved to sit behind his desk, still dabbing at his face with the now blood-stained handkerchief. He opened a drawer next to his left leg with his free hand and pulled out a sake bottle, followed seconds later by a cup. He poured himself a drink and when he raised his eyes from the cup and looked forward Hideaki was already stood in front of his desk. Urumeki looked at his henchman with dead eyes, no emotion registered in them whatsoever. Hideaki stared back, his eyes equally as dead.

"Do not keep me waiting Hideaki. When I said immediately, I expected you to be here before I even hung up the phone. Do you understand?"

Urumeki's tone was calm, but there was no missing the hint of anger that tainted his voice.

"Yes, father."

Contrary to his fearsome appearance, Hideaki's voice was surprisingly normal. A tad deep for a man his age, but nothing too out of the ordinary. If you were to speak to him without seeing his appearance it gave the impression of a normal man. But his blood covered clothes were far from normal and the rotting smell that emerged from his attire was so strong that it was enough to make anyone normal feel nauseous.

Urumeki took a single sip of his drink. He let the bloody handkerchief go onto his desk and grabbed the ceramic sake bottle in his now free hand. He seemed to turn it in his hands as though he were examining it closely. But suddenly, he flung it at his son. Hard. The thin ceramic exploded into fragments upon impact, cutting Hideaki's skin.

"Never use that word to address me again. I have no qualms about killing you if you displease me boy. Remember that."

"Yes Master. I apologise".

Hideaki gave a deep bow to his father, blood dripping down the little exposed skin on his arms. However, he did not move to stop the blood dripping from his wounds. He just stared at them, fascinated.

"I have a mission for you. The bombs are ready. Use your ability to plant them around the Vongola base without being seen. Be wary of Mukuro Rokudo, he has eyes everywhere. When you are done, wait for my instructions. Do nothing more until I tell you otherwise. And tell Lucca to wake Gokudera Hayato and make him ready to talk. Inform him that he has permission to use force if necessary. Truly, I would prefer it".

Hideaki nodded his understanding, bowed deeply to his father and with the blink of any eye he was gone. Urumeki sat back in his chair, the fingers of his hands tied together. A menacing smile tugged at his lips and a second later a cheerful chuckle escaped from his mouth.

He was looking forward to making Gokudera Hayato suffer…

To Be Continued

**So chapter 11 is about that crazy coconut Urumeki. And boy is he crazy. I hope that he does actually present a good antagonist, along with his ****SON**** (dun dun dun. Big shock) Hideaki. I'm interested to know whether anyone saw that coming (I'm worried that I'm too predictable lol). **

**I have no idea when the next chapter will be up since I'm trying to write new chapters for The Lingering and Sensei too. But rest assured that I'm already working hard on it. Sometimes I wish I could work as hard on my essays…**

**As always I love getting your reviews ( I appreciate them so much) and your messages too, and constructive criticism is welcome. Seriously, I love the fact that people enjoy what I (pull out from my butt and) write :D Thanks! Ja ne x**


	12. Chapter 12 Escape

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN EITHER GOKUDERA OR URI BUT I DO OWN URUMEKI AND HIS MEN.

Chapter 12

It was the bright lights from the glass chandelier above him that eventually roused Gokudera from unconsciousness. Even with his right eye covered up the dazzling lights hitting his left eye alone was enough to cause a single tear to run down his cheek. He blinked once, then twice to clear his vision of the annoying whiteness that danced around in front of him.

Eventually satisfied that his vision could get no clearer, Gokudera, still disorientated and hurting, proceeded to scan his surroundings with his one un-bandaged eye. He needed all the information he could get. After all, he wasn't in the most familiar of territories. He needed to know exactly what he was dealing with and needed to form a plan. He didn't know how long he had been unconscious for, or where he was but he still needed to escape as soon as he could.

After scanning his surroundings to the best of his ability Gokudera was surprised by two things. The first being that he wasn't in the typical prison cell that he assumed he would end up in. Rather he was in a finely decorated and grand bedroom, although he was secured tightly to the bed. The second thing he was surprised by was the amount of pain he was in upon awakening. He hadn't thought it was possible to feel so much pain and still be able to retain consciousness, but then again he wasn't your average human. He looked around the room as best as he was capable, keeping his movements to a minimum to lessen the pain.

He gathered that he was fastened tightly to the bed, both his arms and legs chained to the bed but his movement wasn't severely restricted.

"How fucking primitive," he said out loud his voice husky from not being used for a time.

Looking over his body he noticed that someone had changed him out of his ruined suit and put him in a Japanese robe. Had he not been chained to the bed he would have appeared to be a valued guest rather than a prisoner.

"I fucking liked that suit. One more reason for me to kick your asses when I get out of here you bastards."

Gokudera's right arm was strapped tightly against his body, bandaged thoroughly and he felt bandages press against his forehead, torso, arms as well as both his legs. Whoever had treated his wounds was an expert, that much was obvious. Though it was still agony, Gokudera was well aware that he should have been feeling the pain far more than he was. With such serious injuries it was surprising that he was actually conscious in the first place. But it staggered him that his enemies were taking such good care of him in the first place. He had expected them to let him suffer, to dull his senses and try to make him more submissive to their will. But someone obviously hadn't received the memo, or acted against it.

Gokudera knew what they wanted from him even without them telling him. It was obvious and he was by no means a fool. But they had quite a fight on their hands if they thought he'd lay down and surrender to them. If that's the type of man they thought he was then they obviously hadn't done their research well enough. Gokudera wouldn't give up, he would find a way to escape. Alive, and if possible he would take as much of the opposition down on his way out as he could manage.

"I need to get back to them. That idiot is useless without me. He's probably crying somewhere that he couldn't save me or some shit like that. Fucking idiot."

Gokudera was well aware that Yamamoto was furiously protective of him when it mattered and he knew that both Yamamoto and Tsuna would blame themselves for his capture. That's why he needed to get back in one piece. If he were to die in enemy hands they would never forgive themselves, even Hibari would be angry somewhere deep, deep inside. Lambo would cry. Even though he swore to Gokudera that he would stay strong. Mukuro? Who knew what _that _guy would do. And Ryohei…well he wouldn't let Gokudera rest in peace that was for sure. He'd probably shout at his grave until he died himself.

"That would just be fucking annoying."

Now that he thought about it, Gokudera realised how lucky he was to have so many people by his side. So many people that would be sad or angry if he didn't manage to get out alive. If that wasn't incentive enough he didn't know what was

"Well this wont fucking do now will it? I'm supposed to be having lunch with Shittoppi-chan on Tuesday, I have dinner with father and sis on Wednesday and so much fucking paperwork to do. I'm too busy to lie here and do nothing. I'm no fucking damsel in distress waiting for rescue."

Gokudera had already assumed that the room he was held in was both bugged and watched closely. But unbeknownst to them Gokudera already had ways of dealing with that.

He knew that the other Vongola guardians would mount a rescue, that they would come for him. But he had no time to wait around to be saved. He had no idea what Urumeki had up his sleeve after all. For all he knew Urumeki had simply brought him here to kill him from the comfort of his own home. That was definitely possibly considering what a nutcase he was. But Urumeki had forgotten one thing. The Storm guardian never rested and kept attacking. What's more they obviously weren't aware of Gokudera's special ability, something that he had honed into perfection over weeks of intense training. Him and his partner that was. Urumeki seemed to be under the impression that Uri was summoned from the box fastened to his belt, but that was not the case. Kept there simply as a ruse to trick the opponent into believing the obvious, the box was actually useless. Gokudera hadn't summoned Uri from the box in months. Rather he had worked closely with both Spanner and Giannini, told them all the information about the boxes he gathered when he had travelled ten years into the future, and they had developed the technology into something far greater and far more convenient. Something of a similar nature to the box but with a far smaller mass, say something the size of a small earring. To be more precise, the silver earring that was at that moment pierced to Gokudera's right ear. The enemy had taken his boxes, his belt, his rings and even the glasses he kept in the inside pocket of his suit but they obviously hadn't suspected that Gokudera's earrings held any threat. And they would suffer for that miscalculation. Gokudera was aware that once he started his escape his time would be limited, Uri wasn't invisible after all. Gokudera would have to move as quickly as he could manage.

He summoned Uri quickly, carefully instructing his energy to a point under the bed. Hopefully Uri would get the hint and appear under the bed where he would not be seen.

Just as Gokudera had hoped Uri understood his masters orders and although in his weaker and more childlike form, stayed out of sight when he was summoned. They had practiced for situations like this after all. Gokudera had prepared for any and every occasion, even his own kidnap. Now all he needed was to initiate the escape.

"Home run."

That was the code word. Obviously suggested by a certain other person rather than Gokudera. But unfortunately, unknown whether to simply annoy Gokudera or not, Uri had responded to that idiot's code word better so Gokudera had reluctantly decided to run with it.

Code: Home run was the signal word for Uri to use one of his more useful attacks in those situations. Using the storm and lightning attributes he created a magnetic field around himself, making it grow with each passing second until it enveloped the whole room. It was completely invisible to the human eye and scrambled any and every working electronic devices in the room. Urumeki's men were now blind and deaf to Gokudera's activities. But the fact that they could no longer see into the room would give them cause to check up on Gokudera personally. So he had to act fast. Using what little energy he could muster for it, Gokudera channelled some of his strength into Uri and watched in relief as the small cat grew into his larger form slowly but surely.

"Phew. Thank God I had enough left for that. Right Uri, you know what to do. Make it quick though."

Uri growled his response, knowing full well what Gokudera required of him and promptly set to work on freeing Gokudera from the bed. His sharp teeth encircled the chains that held his master and with a single bite severed them easily. Within seconds Gokudera was no longer chained to the bed. Although the manacles were still firmly clasped around his thin wrists Gokudera could now finally attempt an escape.

He slowly sat himself upright groaning with effort and wincing with the pain that followed. It was far more painful than he had anticipated and he wasn't quite prepared for it. Teeth clenched Gokudera braced himself for the pain as he attempted to stand up.

When he swayed and his knees buckled under him it was only thanks to Uri placing himself under Gokudera that he did not fall to the ground. Gokudera clung to Uri's fur and pulled himself up slowly, making sure that he didn't let go of his partner. He gasped with pain as he felt the strain on his recently set shoulder. But he was thankful that it wasn't still dislocated at least.

Hearing Gokudera hiss with pain Uri shifted his body slightly as if to make it easier on him.

"Thanks Uri," Gokudera said gently as he scratched behind the large cat's ear, "now what say we get out of this fucking hellhole? I'm counting on you to watch my back. I cant let these guys get close enough to land a hit on me or we'll be in trouble so we need to keep to mid or long range attacks. Got it?"

Uri growled in agreement and headed for the door slowly, making sure to support Gokudera's weight as he moved forward. He was well aware that Gokudera could barely stand on his own let alone walk.

As they neared the large door, inch by inch, Gokudera readied himself for the attack that would blast the door off its hinges. Not the subtlest of approaches maybe but they had no time to spare.

Suddenly, as they were just a foot away from the door the handle began to turn ever so slightly.

"Fuck!" Gokudera cursed, as the door slowly began to open…

TO BE CONTINUED

**Okay, so I have an apology due here. Since my laptop broke a while back that means I have to practically start anew on these chapters so it's going to take a while for me to get this back on track ( Dummy that I am, I didn't save the chapters on my memory stick). I have no idea when the next chapter will be out since I'm so busy lately m but I guarantee that the next chapter will be interesting.**

**As usual review, message or send me any criticisms.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	13. Chapter 13 Truth

Chapter 13

The door opened another inch. It seemed to Gokudera as though it was moving in slow motion but his brain on the other hand was working quickly, moving swiftly through every option available to him. Picking a plan from his options Gokudera quickly hissed his plan quietly to Uri, who looked ready to pounce on whoever was opening the door.

Uri complied quickly and leaped into position. Gokudera meanwhile dropped to the floor, careful to do it gently in case he were to aggravate his wounds, and feigned unconsciousness. Perhaps not the best plan he had ever constructed but with as little time as he had it was the best he could do. He made sure to make it look as though he had genuinely passed out from the pain of his injuries and manoeuvred himself into an awkward position on the floor, one arm painfully underneath his body. He needed it to look real.

Gokudera didn't see the door open fully but he heard it. He had no idea who the person in the doorway was and what they wanted but he didn't care. He needed to escape and get back to his family and he would go through whoever crossed his path to do it, without mercy.

Gokudera cursed inwardly as he heard the visitor close the door behind him with a definitive slam. Part of his plan had already been compromised. Gokudera had hoped that his visitor would neglect to close the door when he saw him sprawled on the floor but he was obviously more rational under pressure than Gokudera thought he would be.

The visitor did hurry to his side though, so it was apparent that he thought that Gokudera was indeed in a real predicament on the floor. Gokudera was pleasantly surprised. The plan wasn't exactly a Gokudera original. He couldn't even count how many times he had seen it in the movies or read about it in a book. Obviously this guard or whoever he was needed to get out more if it actually managed to fool him. But Gokudera was relieved that his visitor was of the gullible variety.

Gokudera couldn't judge who it was by the quick footsteps to his side but when he heard the voice he knew who it was immediately. A deceivingly kind voice, tinged with a strange tone of worry.

Lucca Urumeki was in his cell, frantically taking his pulse.

"Gokudera-san. Gokudera-san can you hear me?"

Gokudera decided it was time to strike while Lucca was preoccupied. He mumbled something just quiet enough that Lucca could hear that he had said something but could not be fully certain what it was.

"What is it Gokudera-san?"

Gokudera felt Lucca move his ear closer to his mouth to hear the words. An almost malicious smile tugged at his lips as the words escaped from his mouth once more, certain that this time Lucca could hear exactly what was said.

"I said, 'Now Uri'!"

Lucca turned round suddenly when he heard Uri growl from behind him but was too late to act. Uri quickly leaped from his position behind the door and using his full strength took Lucca clean off his feet and pinned him to the ground. Gokudera heard the breath escape Lucca's mouth in a painful gasp. It seemed as though Uri had struck him in the precise spot that Gokudera had pierced him with his attack before.

Gokudera pushed himself into a seated position and looked at his visitor with a smile.

"Surprise, you fucker."

Pulling himself slowly to his feet, once again being careful not to cause himself any extra pain, Gokudera then stumbled over to Uri's side. He scratched Uri's ears tenderly and looked down at his new captive with cold eyes. Lucca looked back at him, his eyes closed tightly and his teeth clenched in an expression of the pain he was in. A small puddle of fresh blood gathered underneath his pinned body and spread over his previously spotless shirt. But Gokudera felt little sympathy for him. After all, he was in a far worse state himself, even if he was patched up.

Gokudera looked down at his new prisoner and then scanned the room. His mind was moving at a fast pace once more, calculating what steps to take now that one problem had been temporarily taken care of.

"This is usually the part where you panic and plead for your life," Gokudera said monotonously.

Lucca opened his eyes and looked upward at Gokudera. There was no fear in his eyes though. There was pain…and acceptance. His expression almost begged for Gokudera to give him release.

"I don't intend to beg and plead for _this_ life. If it pleases you, feel free to take it…it already ceased to be mine fifteen years ago," Lucca said with far more emotion than Gokudera had heard from him since they had met.

Fifteen years ago…it would be a lie if Gokudera said that he was not intrigued to know what Lucca meant by that.

And something seemed to strike a chord with Gokudera himself, it was as if a light bulb had been switched on his brain suddenly. Things he had thought he had forgotten suddenly resurfaced in his mind, memories of his childhood he had lost. Suddenly, he made connections. Things made sense at last, questions Gokudera had now had answers. One of them being how Urumeki knew about _that _in the first place. It all came down to this man in front of him.

Lucca Urumeki.

"Fifteen years ago, you were supposed to have died with your family at your manor. Am I right?"

Lucca looked up at Gokudera suddenly, his handsome face registering clear shock at Gokudera's words. He obviously hadn't expected Gokudera to piece the puzzle together so quickly.

"That mind of your is truly frightening Gokudera-san. I didn't expect you to find out who I was before I was able to tell you myself."

Gokudera looked down at the man before him. The man whose true identity was now all too obvious.

"Matteo Vincenti."

"Yes…that was my name in my previous life. We played together as children if I recall correctly Gokudera-san. You taught me origami on the balcony outside of your room and we would draw awful pictures together on the tablecloth in your dining room."

Gokudera interrupted shortly.

"What happened Matteo? The authorities said your corpse was found in the manor along with your family. They said you were shot in the head just like the rest of them. So how is it that you're here in front of me now fifteen years later working with that sick bastard of all people? He's the one that murdered your family to get ahead in the mafia!"

Matteo Vincenti sighed heavily, his face wrenched in an expression of pain, but he proceeded to speak regardless.

"My name isn't Matteo anymore, I've been Lucca for over a decade now. I'm aware that Urumeki is the one that arranged my parents murder. Believe me…I didn't follow him willingly at first. When he killed my parents he left me alive for a reason, he saw that I had something he could use."

"By that you mean your power? That control over ice? I already figured out during our battle that you can freeze people for a while. That makes it seem as though you're able to stop time doesn't it? And there was something that you knew that Urumeki needed to know wasn't there?"

Lucca surprised Gokudera when he laughed suddenly. It was a surprisingly warm laugh.

"You know, I was always jealous of your intelligence when I was a child. I was two years older than you, but you seemed to know far more than I ever would. I was jealous of that side of you but I respected it as well. I was always proud that I was able to be friends with such a smart child. As usual, you got it exactly right Gokudera-kun. As the Vongola have their own respective power so did we Vincenti's: ice. And on that day he saw me, at only seven years old use it better than any adult. So he took me with him."

"Just took you?"

"I didn't make it easy for him, he had killed my parents in front of my eyes after all. But he struck a hard bargain that I had no choice but to accept."

Gokudera could already tell what it was without Lucca having to tell him and felt himself unconsciously sympathising with his childhood friend. He had only said parents after all.

"He offered me a choice. I either went with him quietly and he would let my brother live or I struggled, he would take me anyway and kill my brother on the way out. I had to keep Cesa safe. He was the only family I had left."

Gokudera vaguely remembered Cesare Vincenti. He had been four years younger than Matteo, two years younger than himself, a cute, energetic curly haired kid that ran everywhere and followed his brother around like his shadow. Matteo had always been fiercely protective of him.

"Where is he now?" Gokudera asked, trying hard to make his voice impassive.

"He's looked after in Urumeki's manor but I haven't seen him in ten years. But he writes to me sometimes. I've been working for the guy who killed our parents for years to protect Cesa…but I want out. I want to find him and get him out of there. I want to escape and build a life for us outside this mafia. I've had enough of being that psychopath's puppet."

"You still haven't answered one of my questions. There was something else he needed you for wasn't there? Something you had overheard our fathers talking about."

Lucca nodded gravely.

"When we hid under that table as children I never thought that what we heard would change my life so much. It was both a blessing and a curse that I found out about the Vongola Ark and the keys that opened it…"

TO BE CONTINUED

**God I hope that wasn't too cliché. As usual mail me or review ****J**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS FROM KHR.**


	14. Chapter 14 Doubt

**Phewwwww! I thought I'd never get this chapter done. I'm so relieved I might cry :D**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS IN KHR BUT I DO OWN URUMEKI, LUCCA AND HIDEAKI.**

Chapter 14- Doubt

Gokudera watched Lucca shift uncomfortably under Uri's weight and noted the red stain that seemed to be spreading under his shirt at a rather worrying pace. When Lucca looked at him, unconsciously grimacing from the pain, Gokudera pretended he didn't notice, or rather that he didn't care. He couldn't show concern towards the enemy now, even if they had been close friends once upon a time.

Instead of focusing his gaze on the man clearly in pain in front of him Gokudera suddenly found a keen interest in studying his box beast. In the short amount of time that he did actually scrutinize his partner he was alarmed to see that, like an impressionable child copying one of its parents, Uri had picked up a few of Yamamoto's habits. In such a serious situation as they were in at that time it was disturbing the number of times that Uri had yawned lazily or just stared off dreamily into the distance. Gokudera made a swift note to himself to stop Uri from hanging around Yamamoto in future, he was clearly a bad influence.

When Gokudera returned to looking at Lucca he felt an annoying tinge of guilt as he saw him flinch in pain once more.

"Uri. Move your paws so that they focus your weight on his hands and feet," Gokudera commanded, ensuring that his voice sounded cold when he did so.

Uri looked quizzically up at his master, seemed to snort arrogantly but finally complied. With the weight literally off his chest Lucca breathed a sigh of relief, and then flinched when it actually caused him pain.

"Thank you, Gokudera-san."

Gokudera made sure to maintain a unsympathetic look on his face.

"Don't get me wrong. If you die from blood loss then you wont be able to answer my questions. I'm in no fucking mood to start playing happy families here, understand?"

Even after hearing Gokudera's stern tone and harsh words Lucca's expression was one of complete understanding.

"You still cant trust me yet. Not that I expected this to be easy of course," he said, laughing slightly.

Gokudera was taken aback once again by the cheerfulness of the other man despite everything.

"Yeah well, you've been with that crazy bastard for 15 years. Who knows what kind of tricks you've learnt. Can you honestly tell me that if our positions were reversed that you would trust me at this point? I don't fucking think so."

Lucca chuckled warmly.

"No I wouldn't. In all honestly if our positions were reversed, I think I would have killed you by now. I understand your distrust of me…although I'm sad that our lives seem to have taken such different turns. I would have liked to have walked alongside you."

At that Lucca's expression turned sad, as though he could see the future that had been beyond his reach. Gokudera tried to ignore that expression. It certainly didn't seem as though Lucca was acting, but then Gokudera didn't know how good an actor Lucca could have been. Against his better judgement Gokudera found himself responding to the other man's words.

"Maybe one day you can. If you really are on my side and want to take that crazy fuck down then tell it to me straight. Does he have any of the ten keys?"

Gokudera was surprised when Lucca answered him immediately without an ounce of hesitation.

"At the moment he has one. Hideaki was able to find it hidden in one of your weaker allies' base. But don't worry. I made sure that everyone was safe before we left."

Gokudera clicked his tongue in annoyance. He had planted the key there of all places because he assumed that his enemies would overlook such a weak ally as the key-holders. Urumeki obviously knew the way his mind worked if he even thought to look there. But at least they were alive. That relieved him immensely. Tsuna would be heartbroken if he lost them.

There was no disguising the bitter tone in his voice when he spoke.

"I see. So the other keys are safe?"

"Yes. Both the Cavallone and the Shimon fought back admirably alongside the Varia and your sun guardian. There was no need to worry that they couldn't protect their keys, it was their win before the battle really got going. Urumeki severely underestimated your friends."

Gokudera reflected on this and something struck a chord in him.

"And you know all of this because?"

Lucca knew far too much about the incident, and when he answered Gokudera his suspicions were confirmed. Although there was a surprised neatly thrown in that caught Gokudera off guard.

"I know, because for a short while I was there, fighting alongside them both. I must say that a disguise works wonders when you have your own agenda. I've been very busy while you slept Gokudera-san. Although I have to say that there was no real need for me to be there in the first place. Both families were more than capable without my assistance."

At hearing Lucca's claims Gokudera could hardly contain his disbelief.

"I'm supposed to believe that you fought with us right under Urumeki's nose? Excuse me if I find that a little fucking hard to digest."

Lucca sighed and then proceeded to nod in understanding.

"Believe it or not, it's all up to you. But I didn't tell you this thinking that you would actually take my word for it. But when you escape from this place, which I'll make sure you will, if you still doubt my loyalty to this cause then ask Adelheid-san. She can vouch for my contribution. In the meantime I don't blame you if you still find it hard to trust me."

Gokudera worked all the new information in his thoughts, piecing events together, trying to establish how much Urumeki knew about the ark and whether Lucca was too good to be true.

"I'm not stupid or even remotely forgiving enough to shake your hand, tell you to forget everything and pretend like we're friends", Gokudera stated coldly.

"I know that. But if even a single part of you believes in me still then trust in what I have to say. Once you leave this room take three right turns into separate hallways and enter the first door on your left- that's where they keep your equipment. But be careful, the guard patrols change every half hour. When you leave that room go down the staircase at the end of the hallway and through the large door. That's where he keeps the key. It's _never_ unguarded though, so I suggest you think of a plan beforehand."

Lucca finished giving his instructions then fell silent, obviously awaiting Gokudera's response.

"If you're so concerned about the key why haven't you taken care of this yourself. Is it because of Cesa?"

Lucca's expression turned grim at Gokudera's question.

"I just want him to be safe. I cant risk it just yet. That's why I have a favour to ask of you. Please, help Cesa. I don't care what happens to me, you can leave me here to die for all I care. But please, give him the freedom that I never had. He doesn't deserve this life."

Gokudera took note as Lucca's voice broke with emotion and contemplated his options. His mind was a flurry of thoughts and very much broken into two different factions. He debated on whether to take a risk and trust the other man or to stay wary. He briefly thought of what Tsunaa would do if he were in this situation. There was no doubt that Tsuna would trust him. He was always trying to find the best in people after all.

But Gokudera wasn't Tsuna. He couldn't just throw away logic and trust people unconditionally, even if they used to be his friends.

However, something niggled at the back of his mind. It was a strange sensation. A desire to trust. The logical part of Gokudera's mind argued that it could most definitely be a trap, but his instinct said differently. For one of few times in his life his heart was arguing louder than his logic.

After a few more moments of going through the motions Gokudera sighed internally, his mind finally made up. He'd go with his instinct and give Matteo Vincenti the benefit of the doubt. But not without taking certain precautions first of course. Gokudera wasn't stupid after all. If it did turn out to be a trap he would need something to fall back on just in case.

He spoke in a quiet voice but there was no hiding the severity in his tone.

"If this turns out to be a fucking trap of any kind you'll be sorry. If you let me down you can forget about rescuing Cesa because you'll be the one in need of fucking rescuing Matteo. Comprende?"

Lucca showed no hesitation in responding.

"Yes, I understand," he said with a gentle smile, " but we need to ensure that Urumeki doesn't find about this. He cant know that you found out who I am or he'll begin to suspect me. He's far cleverer than he seems. You'd do well not to underestimate him Haya."

Gokudera almost physically baulked at being referred to by his old nickname and Lucca looked equally as shocked. It was apparent that it had just slipped out in the heat of the moment, but it hung between them in the air.

"I'm sorry. Memories of our past just came flooding back and it slipped past."

"I can understand why you value memories of the past, before that psycho murdered your family. That I get. But why the fuck are you so hung up your past with me? We only met four fucking times over three years."

It did puzzle Gokudera. The guy was completely obsessed with the past and Gokudera had no clue why he looked back on those days so fondly. To him they didn't seem all that important, nothing special. Lucca seemed to acknowledge his confusion and laughed.

"Ha ha ha. It doesn't really matter how many times we met. It didn't take me long to become completely loyal to the mischievous little boy who threw his sisters cooking at me on our first meeting. Call me masochistic if you will, but it's the first time I remember having fun. I loved my parents…but they did not make my childhood easy. That day with you is the first time I recall being able to act like a child."

Gokudera said nothing. He had known that Matteo's family had pushed a lot of responsibility onto the young child, that their expectations of him were absurdly high, but he had no idea that Matteo had thought so highly of him.

"We don't have time for this fond reminiscing right now. We're on a fucking tight schedule. I have a family to get back to and I'd prefer to do it before they wreck the fucking base. Who knows what kind of stupid moves they'll pull to get me back. You said we need to keep this shit realistic right?"

It seemed as though Lucca already knew what was coming. He closed his eyes without uttering a single word, a small, knowing smile tugging at his lips and waited patiently for the blow that he knew was coming.

Gokudera punched him, hard, and Lucca's head fell back, hitting the floor with an impact that made Gokudera wince. The punch had caused some pain for Gokudera as well. He felt some of his wounds re-open and his right arm screamed in pain. He winced painfully and took his time to kneel in front of Lucca's motionless body to make sure that he really was down for the count. He confirmed that he was and for a few seconds he kneeled there looking over the unconscious man. He found his gaze focusing on the wound on his chest once again, annoyed that he couldn't really do anything about it in case it aroused enemy suspicion.

Gokudera motioned for Uri to move away from Lucca gently and then stood up with some effort. He looked at Lucca's face, noting that he looked almost peaceful, as though a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders and then turned his back on him. He moved slowly towards the door, limping slightly and leaning on Uri far more than he should have been.

Just before he opened the door he stopped momentarily and spoke, his voice a whisper full of emotion.

"Sorry Matteo."

Gokudera reached for the handle, turned it and opened the door cautiously. He made sure the coast was clear and then stepped through the door out of his prison.

Urumeki stood behind the window and looked at the encompassing mountain view, fingering a sharpened letter opener in his grasp, running his index finger over the blade in an almost tender manner. When the blade sliced through his skin he didn't react in the slightest and neither did he move an inch when Hideaki suddenly appeared before his desk. Urumeki turned away from the window and looked at his son as he would a stranger, saying nothing. When Hideaki himself spoke he was as monotonous and unemotional as ever.

"It's been done, master".

At this Urumeki stopped playing with the letter opener and placed it on his desk without a word. He rested both hands against the wooden desk and lowered his head. His back trembled slightly, but it was obvious that it wasn't from fear or the cold.

Suddenly, actually managing to make even Hideaki jump slightly, Urumeki threw his head back violently and laughed. Even to Hideaki the shrieks of laughter were inhuman, and despite himself it sent shivers down his spine.

Urumeki ran his bloody finger over his lips, lapping it up like a kitten would milk. With the blood now drenching his lips and his wild eyes open wide he looked even more beast-like. But when he spoke, his tone was surprisingly calm, which did not suit his disturbing facial features.

"Excellent. Lucca is taking far too long. I think I'll go retrieve Gokudera-kun personally and teach that disgusting half-breed what it means to defy me…"

TO BE CONTINUED

**Wow. I cant believe that this series has made it to chapter 14. I never thought that I of all people could overcome my laziness to get this far. But so you demand, so you shall receive (eventually) :D**

**I'll be working hard over the next few days in getting these new chapters up and hopefully adding a few more series.**

**As usual, feel free to review or send me any criticisms or compliments by mail. I always like to receive them. Mata ne!**


	15. Chapter 15 Escape

**Woo hoo! 15 CHAPTERS! I cant believe that this story (which wasn't initially this long) is still going strong. And how's this for progress, two chapters in two days! Now if only I could keep this up lol. Enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters from KHR but I do own Urumeki, Lucca and Hideaki.**

Chapter 15

Gokudera wouldn't exactly call what he was doing at that exact moment running. It looked more like a drunken stumble if anything. His balance was all over the place and his legs seemed to have a mind of their own as they buckled and weakened due to his injuries. More than once he had fallen against the wall due to his legs losing strength. He knew that it would be a challenge to retrieve his equipment from Urumeki's nose but he never thought he would be having so much trouble in actually reaching the damn room.

It took him far longer to reach his destination than he had wanted, and the occasional breathers had not helped him. Uri remained by Gokudera's side the whole time, occasionally serving as support when he stumbled. Gokudera was grateful by the odd show of compassion from his partner and showed his thanks by scratching behind Uri's soft ears affectionately.

"I'll treat you to some of my flame when we get out of this hell."

At hearing this Uri growled in approval and Gokudera had to hide his smile.

As he continued to move forward Gokudera found that his pain mounted with every step he took, and when he finally reached the door Lucca had instructed him to find he was almost panting with the effort. His wounds were obviously taking their toll on him.

He stood facing the plain door and just stared at it, as if he hoped that somehow he would be able to see through the wood into the room beyond. Gokudera calculated the chances of it being a trap concocted by Lucca and Urumeki or simply the chances that his equipment was actually there in the first place. He looked to his side where Uri sat and searched for his opinion. Uri seemed to shrug indifferently and simply licked his paw.

"Thanks for the contribution," Gokudera said sarcastically.

He faced the door once more and stared down at the handle. His brain worked tirelessly.

"_If this is a trap, I'm fucking done for," _he thought to himself before finally extending his hand to grasp the handle. He exchanged a single look with Uri, one that told him to stay on his guard, and then he turned the handle and pushed the door open. Instead of barging in recklessly he stayed outside momentarily, half expecting an army of guards to emerge to inspect the outside.

But no-one came out.

When Gokudera eventually peered into the large room cautiously he was astounded when he saw that it was completely empty of humans. Gokudera's equipment didn't seem to be particularly guard-worthy it seemed. However, it would be a bad move on Urumeki's part to leave his equipment within reach.

"What the fuck is going on? They're making this too easy. And here I thought Urumeki was actually smarter than this."

Gokudera stepped inside the room, leaving Uri outside as a lookout. He looked around, noting the priceless antique paintings hanging from the walls and the ornate sculptures encircling the room.

"Fuck. This guy has bad taste," he mumbled to himself as he searched every inch of the room.

Only one part of the room really stood out. It certainly didn't seem to fit in with the rest of the decorations.

In the left-hand corner of the room was a large metal safe. Whereas the rest of the objects in the room bragged of being hundred of years old, it was obvious that the safe was a rather new addition. It stood at least ten feet tall and five feet wide and dominated that part of the room.

"Well I'd say that place is as good as any to store an enemy's gear."

Gokudera found himself smirking. It seemed that Urumeki had underestimated him once again. Did he really think that Gokudera couldn't break into a safe?

Gokudera walked slowly toward the safe, careful not to touch anything, or even brush against anything. Five feet away he stopped and studied it. Even from where he stood he could see that it wouldn't put up a real challenge. The vaults and safes they had back at the Vongola base was at least twenty times more advanced than what he saw in front of him.

The question was…why was it so easy? Even the door had been unlocked. Either Urumeki was the most negligent man he had ever met, or there was something more to it.

It was then that noticed them. On either side of the safe were two small boxes. Gokudera had to squint to see them but he could immediately tell what they were.

Laser sensors.

If Gokudera had taken even three more steps forward he would have set off the alarms, and his enemies would have been tipped off to his exact location; probably without him knowing that he had been discovered at all. Luckily for him, Gokudera always believed there was a catch when things went to easily for him, even when it turned out there wasn't. It had saved his skin on countless occasions, not to mention that of Tsuna and the other guardians.

As he stared at the holes Gokudera could almost laugh. Urumeki thought that this would actually challenge him, when he had actually left him with the one thing that was actually capable of overcoming it.

Urumeki had overlooked one important thing; Gokudera himself. Or rather his flame. Gokudera had more than one flame inside his body, and he could manipulate them all at will. Urumeki had seen that firsthand during Gokudera's battles with his henchmen. But for some reason he had chosen to overlook it. But then again, he had never seen that particular use of the lightning flame.

Aware that it would be dangerous and reckless to take Uri away from his lookout duties, and have him use his technique once more, Gokudera opted for another method. He took off the earring at the top of his right ear and held it tenderly between his long fingers. Another of his inventions.

It had taken months to machinate and construct but Gokudera, along with Spanner and Giannini, had finally accomplished it. The design and construction behind it had been hard, but his hard work would finally pay off when he needed it most.

It worked as a timed electrical discharge that overpowered electronic devices. The small diamonds that decorated the outside of the thick stud were actually dials that controlled both the power of the discharge and the timing of it. What's more, only Gokudera knew how it worked. It obviously looked like a simple earring to others, but it was far from it.

The small earring would get the job done.

Uri waited outside for his master, yawning occasionally. Being a lookout bored him when there was no one to look out for. He couldn't smell anyone in the immediate vicinity, they all seemed to be scattered in surrounding corridors. The closest person was at least two minutes away, and moving further from their position with every passing second. He supposed it was a good thing. He knew that Gokudera was far from capable of holding his own in a fight as he was now. Covered in wounds as he was, Uri supposed that something only a little stronger than a gust of wind could send him to his knees. He needed help. He needed Yamamoto. If Yamamoto was there, Gokudera would constantly be trying to save face, pushing himself harder to look like he was doing fine. Yamamoto seemed to make him a more stubborn human, Yamamoto brought the stupid out of him.

Uri yawned once more and was about to start licking his paw when his exhausted looking master walked up behind him. Uri noticed that he was missing an earring, but was carrying all his lost gear and tenderly placing the Vongola ring back where it belonged.

"That's better. Losing all my stuff was beginning to make me feel naked," his master stated with a smirk.

Uri found himself rolling his eyes. He preferred it when his master was shouting to when he was attempting to tell jokes. He watched Gokudera pass by him, careful to look out for any sign of him stumbling, and followed close behind. Gokudera seemed to know exactly where he was going and Uri trailed after him, maintaining the same pace as his struggling master. He had never let Gokudera ride him before, and knew that Gokudera respected him too much to demand that of him, but watching his human friend straining to stay upright as he walked made him want to force him to ride.

Gokudera seemed to be heading towards the stairway up ahead, albeit at a rather slow pace.

Suddenly Uri smelled them. Moving at a quick pace and becoming dangerously close to them. They were moving down in what seemed to be one of those up-down boxes that the humans used for transportation from one floor to the next. Uri growled at Gokudera, signalling a warning of what was to come.

But it was too late. They were already there.

Before Gokudera could even think to move, the doors directly to his right opened with a ding, revealing a rather puzzled Urumeki and the usual expressionless Hideaki.

"Fuck," Gokudera shouted as he attempted to turn on his heels and run.

A firm hand clasped around his injured shoulder, causing him to scream and try to twist out of the man's grip. He was forcibly turned to look directly at the now smug faced Urumeki.

"Well now. What a surprise. You know, I was just coming to get you, boy. I have a surprise for you."

As he struggled against his handcuffs in the chair that he had been seated in Gokudera cursed himself in his thoughts.

_I should have moved quicker, been faster. Fuck!_

But he knew that in the state he was in, it was inevitable. He didn't blame Uri either when he was forced back into the earring and taken from him. They had threatened Gokudera after all, and Uri was just showing concern towards his well-being. But that did not make his situation any easier on him. Gokudera knew that this time there would be no easy escapes, none of his gadgets to help him. What he needed now was a miracle. And Gokudera did not believe in miracles.

Gokudera moved his feet, causing the cuffs on his feet to jangle noisily and scrape against his skin. He knew there was no getting out of them without help, and the same could be said off his handcuffs. Urumeki had left nothing to chance this time.

Urumeki was seated opposite to him, leaning forward with one long leg crossed over the other and one hand placed on his chin in a way that made it seem as though he was scrutinizing something. He was studying Gokudera in the same way a person studied a foreign animal, his eyes full of curiosity. Upon hearing the chains jangle once more due to Gokudera's effort Urumeki smiled.

"Satisfied now? Even if you were to free yourself from those chains, I doubt that even you would be able to get past me in that state. Such a shame, you ill-bred son of a whore," Urumeki said, his harsh words accompanied by a crocodile smile.

Gokudera almost rose to the insult when he heard Urumeki bad-mouth his mother, but stopped as he realised it was exactly what he wanted him to do. Instead, he smiled back at Urumeki pleasantly and spoke, maintaining the patronizing smile throughout.

"And earlier you were such a gracious host too. Tut tut. Now if you could do me one last favour and just kill me or maim me quickly and spare me the boring monologues that a villain usually spouts at this point that would be great."

Urumeki said nothing, but his eyes glinted with malice. It seemed that Gokudera was succeeding in getting him riled up at least.

But then he laughed, and the same smile tugged at his lips once more. The same smile that told Gokudera that something bad was coming.

"Now why on earth would I do something like that when all I wanted to do was give you the gift I prepared."

At that, Urumeki took what seemed like a television remote from his jacket and pointed it at the large screen positioned behind him. The television screen flitted on and the image on the screen surprised Gokudera. It was the Vongola base, clear as day. Gokudera could even make out some of the family members tidying away in the courtyard.

Gokudera's stomach flipped. He had a strange suspicion he knew what was coming.

"Such a pain to clean up after such a violent battle wouldn't you say? It would be much better if say…there was nothing there left to clean."

With that Gokudera saw the base erupt violently into flames and he unconsciously shouted in protest as though it would help in some way. He felt tears spring into his eyes before he could stop them.

It hurt.

His home, his family were burning, and there was nothing he was able to do to stop it. Gokudera struggled against his manacles, thrashed about in his seat, averting his eyes from the screen so he didn't have to see it. To see what Urumeki had taken from him.

TO BE CONTINUED

**Gosh I hope you enjoyed that! I felt bad for leaving you guys with nothing for so long so I'm starting on chapter 16 straight away! Bearing in mind that it's currently 3am right now I may not get too far lol. As usual mail or review me and I'd be grateful. Tell me what you'd like to see (except quicker updates lol) or who you'd like to see maybe. I look forward to hearing from you guys. Mata ne x**


	16. Chapter 16 Inferno

**Worry not my friends, you aren't seeing things. I have actually released three successive chapters in the space of two days. 'Egad is she sick?' I hear some of you say. And I can only admit that I'm not actually sure :D Worryingly, this is probably the hardest I've ever worked on this series…**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters of KHR but I do own Urumeki, Lucca and Hideaki.**

Chapter 16- Inferno

Yamamoto Takeshi sprinted around the base tirelessly, maintaining a pace that could have only been achieved with both years of intense training and an ample amount of stamina. He warned anyone he encountered of the imminent danger, whether they were friend or foe. Even though Urumeki had escaped from the scene, taking Gokudera with him, it was safe to say that he had left more than one parting gift. The explosives was meant to get rid of as many of the Vongola as he could all at once, and Yamamoto figured that the extra men he had sent into the base were there to ensure that they were far too occupied to leave. Until it was too late that was.

Yamamoto's suspicions were confirmed when he encountered the enemy forces. They were as unaware of the bombs as Yamamoto had been a mere three minutes before. It seemed that Urumeki didn't see fit to inform his henchmen of Plan B, and didn't care what became of those that were loyal to him. Yamamoto immediately felt grateful that he worked under such a kind and compassionate leader as Tsuna. He was one of the few people that would send his men in to clear such a dangerous site and ensure that his _whole_ family came out alive. It was one of the many reasons why the guardians followed under him. Well, most of them.

That train of thought made Yamamoto think about Gokudera once again. Honestly, it was hard to keep him from his thoughts nowadays; and that day in particular. Yamamoto had clearly overestimated the amount he thought of Gokudera before; it was nothing compared to now. Everything reminded him of his best friend, he found connections where he would have never found them before. A crack on the wall he passed reminded him of the restoration invoice he had found on Gokudera's desk simply an hour ago; leading him to think of Gokudera. One of the family members he encountered in his path had an earful of studs; which made him think of Gokudera. Everything reminded Yamamoto of him, and how he had failed to aid him when it had mattered the most.

Yamamoto clenched his fists and his eyes narrowed as he reminded himself of his failure for practically the hundredth time. He knew that he would never forgive himself for letting Gokudera slip through his fingers, even if Gokudera did.

Plagued by his sombre thoughts throughout his passage through the seventh corridor, Yamamoto proceeded to warn and compel the men he encountered to escape as well as telling them to pass the message to anyone that they came across on their way out. Pressed for time, however, he was unable to make sure that they actually listened to his advice. He could hear more than one gunshot coming from the corridors he had just visited. But he didn't have the time to go back and force them to leave. Unfortunately, whether they lived or died was now entirely up to them.

'_Gokudera could make them leave,' _he found himself thinking sullenly.

And he probably could have. He could be very fearsome when he was angry, and Yamamoto being the chief recipient of his anger knew first hand.

There he was again.

Invading Yamamoto's thoughts.

Intruding in his brain and taking precedence over anything else.

Yamamoto could tell that he was in too deep. If that wasn't proof of his feelings for Gokudera then he didn't know what was. For the second time since Gokudera had been taken hostage Yamamoto vowed to retrieve him at any cost, even if it cost him his own life. Although Gokudera would probably be angry with him for that too.

As he raced ahead, Yamamoto was both relieved and depressed when he saw Irie up ahead, cowering away from gunfire by hiding behind the steel reinforced door to one of the staff barracks.

Seeing that Irie was in danger from the enemy shooting at him, Yamamoto proceeded to walk up to him and snatch the gun from the surprised shooter. When he spoke, he himself was surprised at the coldness of his voice.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. But if I was you then I'd turn back and get out of here. That is, if you don't want to blow up with the rest of this place."

Yamamoto was pleased that the man in front of him was more competent than the last of Urumeki's henchmen that he had met. This one at least seemed to get the message, and didn't waste any time in turning away from Yamamoto and running toward the closest exit.

"Tell anyone you meet…and he's gone. Quick guy."

Yamamoto looked at the gun in his hand and decided to keep it handy in case he needed to use extra persuasion on the next folk he encountered. He put the safety on and stuffed the gun under his belt and then turned to give Irie the all clear. Irie gave a relieved sigh and jogged to Yamamoto's side. He took note of the oddly serious look on Yamamoto's face and suddenly felt increasingly nervous. A serious Yamamoto wasn't usually a good thing.

"Takeshi. What's going on?" he asked, not entirely sure that he actually wanted to know the answer to his question.

"Urumeki abducted Gokudera, and left a little parting present when he left. Mukuro found some explosives planted around the base. We have little over seven minutes left to get out of here."Irie gulped nervously and shook his head, now aware of how bad things had really turned and how close to death he was. But seeing that Yamamoto was risking his life by clearing out the building, Irie attempted to steel himself.

"We'll never get to everyone if we're the only ones telling them," he said, his voice shaking slightly

Yamamoto seemed to look gratefully at Irie at hearing his words, but then the moment was gone and his expression was serious once more.

"I know. Even with Hibari clearing out the other half and Mukuro clearing out the safe house we still don't have enough time, and Tsuna said there was something that he had to take care of in the basement. That's why I was making my way to the lab. I think this situation calls for _the button_."

Yamamoto showed a smile that was the closest to his normal expression that Irie figured he was going to see for a while. Yamamoto probably had more cause than anyone else in the base to look serious at that moment. But Irie understood why he _was_ smiling. The button that he talked about was infamous in the Vongola base due to Gokudera and his experiments with Spanner and Giannini. Their creations were known to reside on the risky side of science, and the chemicals they sometimes used weren't exactly safe. The button, since being added to the lab after invention #2 exploded, was to be used when the base was in immediate danger of:

1. Harmful chemical contact.

2. Blowing up.

All Vongola family members knew that when the alarm sounded it was time to get the hell out until further notice. Hopefully, they would still clear out automatically even in the midst of battle.

Irie nodded.

"That could work. I'll do it. You keep trying to get as many out as you can before then Takeshi," Irie said suddenly.

Before Yamamoto could say anything, Irie was already racing down the hallway at a quick pace. Yamamoto accepted that he had made his mind up but that didn't make watching his retreating back any easier.

"Shouichi you better be out in six minutes! Get as far away from the main building as you can!" Yamamoto yelled after him.

He saw Irie raise a hand in response and set off himself, making his way frantically through hallway after hallway, clearing out those he could convince and those he had to force when they didn't listen. Two minutes later he heard the shrill alarm sound through the hallways.

Four minutes left.

He kept running, panting heavily, his legs now beginning to tire from the continuous effort.

A minute later his earpiece crackled into life and Hibari's cold voice sounded in his ear. He only spoke two words but got his message through loud and clear.

"It's done."

Yamamoto grabbed his two-way radio from his trouser pocket and gave his own short message.

"Leave the rest to me."

No response came from Hibari's end but although he couldn't see or hear it, Yamamoto was certain that Hibari was glaring down at his own radio at that very moment.

Two and a half minutes left.

Yamamoto had done everything he could, had cleared out everyone who had the common sense to listen to him, and even those who hadn't.

With thirty seconds left he ran towards the front door, a small group of people running closely behind him. Some, like Yamamoto himself, supported others as they ran. The injured people slowed them down but Yamamoto was not prepared to leave them behind. That wasn't the way the Vongola family worked, wasn't how he worked.

With seventeen seconds left Yamamoto and his group finally passed through the front door, shouting at those they encountered outside to run. Those of the Vongola did, but Urumeki's men simply stared at them and even worse, shot at them as they ran from the main building.

Bullets careening by them, one even grazing Yamamoto's shoulder, the group ran.

4...

3...

2...

1...

Yamamoto heard and felt the earth shake before he saw anything.

The base exploded in a smothering mix of flame and heat which threw Yamamoto and the group clean off their feet. They hadn't been fast enough to escape the full impact of the explosion no matter how hard they had ran.

Yamamoto landed on his front almost ten feet away from where he used to be, the impact knocking him unconscious.

His figure lay prone on the grass as the building behind him burned…

TO BE CONTINUED

**Another chapter from Yama's POV, just in case you were wondering what was going on out there while Gokudera is getting VIP treatment from Urumeki.**

**I still find it hard to believe the progress I've made on this series in the past couple of days…and stranger still, I've actually started on chapter 17 already…**

**I'd appreciate some feedback in either message or review form to distract me from the fact that my little sister just farted in her sleep. *Dies***


	17. Chapter 17 Rendezvous

**Now this is just plain ridiculous. I'm spoiling you guys now. My hand is starting to hurt from all the typing *sob* :D I think this is what they mean when people say 'you're on a roll'…**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters from KHR but I do own the rest!**

Chapter 17-Rendezvous

Ryohei looked at the horrifying scene in front of him, not exactly sure what he should be feeling about the situation. For some odd reason he actually had a sudden urge to burst out laughing. Was it a sign of panic? Because he was sure that was at least one of the things he was feeling as he stared at the large pyres of fire rise up in front of him. Panic, followed closely by pure anger. His thoughts raged. Was it Urumeki who had done this? Why cause so much destruction?

Then came the fear.

Kyoko.

His little sister could be in there, burning to death as he simply sat there safely watching the scene through the window of the jet. As if on cue, at the same time his brain told him to land the plane, Xanxus' voice shouted at him urgently.

"SASAGAWA! LAND THIS FUCKING PLANE NOW!"

Ryohei could tell it was serious because Xanxus didn't refer to him as 'trash'. It was probably the first time Ryohei had heard his surname come from the leader of the Varia's mouth. Any other time and it would have caused Ryohei to feel strangely humbled. But he had no time to dwell on that now.

Almost as if a switch had been turned on in his brain, Ryohei calmed down enough to concentrate on landing the plane a safe distance away from the burning base. He swallowed the bile that rose to his mouth as he saw part of the second floor give way and collapse onto the first floor.

The sheer number of explosions was causing the building to burn at a rapid pace. A pace which suggested to Ryohei that there would be nothing they could do to stop the fire. The building would burn to the ground. It was inevitable. All that was left for them to do was to look for survivors.

That was if there were any.

All Ryohei could see was flames. The thick black smoke rising from the burning building came close to blotting out the sun completely. To him it looked like hell. It was made even worse by the fact that for almost three years this place had been his home. The loss of something that he actually cared about was stifling, especially in such a manner as he saw in front of him.

Though his mind was far from calm, Ryohei somehow managed to land the plane a safe distance away from the fire, but still close enough to get there quickly. It was obvious that they would need to work fast. The base was surrounded by a forest after all; it was inevitable that the trees would catch fire and the flames would eventually spread farther and wilder.

With the plane safely landed, Ryohei burst through the cabin door into the passenger area. Xanxus looked out his window, his face grimmer than usual, and Belphegor was no longer smiling his usual sadistic smile. Seeing Xanxus clench his fists, it became obvious to Ryohei that the older man was furious.

"Sasagawa," he said suddenly, his voice low but filled with anger.

Ryohei stood to attention, surprised at being addressed. Before he could say anything, Xanxus continued.

"The shitty old man. Did he return home."Ryohei finally understood. The former Vongola boss had indeed visited their base for the week. He claimed that it was a formal visit to see how the new boss was getting on, but it had been obvious to everyone that he had just come to visit Xanxus.

"He left this morning, just before all of this started. He's safe," Ryohei responded.

Xanxus' expression did not change in the slightest. It was near impossible for a stranger to guess how he was feeling, but after working with him so many times it was obvious to Ryohei that the Varia leader was relieved. The old man meant far more to him than he let people see.

"Contact the trash. Get them here now."

Xanxus hadn't addressed anyone in particular but Ryohei assumed that he was talking to him. He pressed the power button on his earpiece and took the radio from his pocket. He tuned in the right frequency and tried to get Squalo on the line. At least that's who he thought he was supposed to get on the line. It was difficult to know who Xanxus was talking about when he referred to everyone as either trash or scum.

Ryohei's radio crackled into life and he brought it closer to his mouth.

"Squalo! Come in! It's extremely urgent!"

Ryohei had shouted into his end of the radio, but his volume was nothing compared to Squalo's when he answered ten seconds later.

"VOOOOIIIII! WHAT THE FUCK IS IT?"

Ryohei flinched as the earpiece practically thumped against his eardrums due to the volume.

"They blew up the base. We need you back here ASAP…"

The situation felt more real to Ryohei now that he had said it himself and his stomach flipped.

There was a strange period of silence on the other end of the radio. Even Squalo had been shocked into a temporary silence it seemed. His response was plain and simple, an at half his normal volume.

"Understood."

The radio became silent once more and Ryohei stuffed it into his pocket.

He looked at Xanxus and then Belphegor, clenched his fists and then made his way to the door. It was now or never.

* * *

Ryohei coughed painfully as the smoke tickled the back of his throat. He had only been outside for three minutes but it already hurt to breathe. He figured that if the overwhelming heat didn't get to him then the smoke eventually would.

After leaving the plane, the three men had split up without having to say anything. They merely turned their backs on each other and chose a direction. The base was far too large for them to work as a team in this case. They would save far more people if they acted independently in different areas.

That was what Ryohei had thought at least. But so far, he had found no one alive.

He had taken the left hand side of the base and was working his way to the front slowly, examining the debris scrupulously in case there was someone buried underneath.

After another three minutes passed, Ryohei found his first survivor and quickly set to healing him with the aid of his box beast. He had developed the skill under Gokudera's tutelage of all people, enabling him to not only heighten his own restoration, but that of others as well. It was a good thing too. With all the fighting the guardians encountered, they needed a healer on the team, even if it was Ryohei, the person who was usually in the middle of all the fighting.

Four more survivors followed, along with seven badly burned corpses. Ryohei couldn't even tell if they were from Vongola.

For every survivor he seemed to find, he found two more dead. But those he found alive he healed and instructed them to get to safety.

By the time he turned the corner which led to the front of the base he was exhausted. He had healed at least twenty-three so far, and he hadn't even seen the damage to the front yet.

As he turned the corner the first thing he laid his eyes on was a familiar figure lying prone on the grass.

Yamamoto.

Before he had even finished thinking the name he had set off at a run towards his friend, dodging the falling ash and burning debris that continued to fall from the house. He feared the worst as he got nearer and saw that his fellow guardian wasn't moving an inch, and even more so when he saw the large wound on his back.

Yamamoto's back was drenched in blood, and the people around him didn't look like they were in any better shape. None of them stirred as Ryohei got closer. Yamamoto remained still even as his older friend threw himself to his side.

Ryohei quickly took his friends and let out a breath of relief when he found it beating away stalwartly.

He summoned Kangaryū quickly, grateful that he had been given the power to heal, and set to healing Yamamoto. He pushed his power into it fiercely and was relieved when he began to see the wound on Yamamoto's back rapidly improve. In the state he was in, Ryohei doubted that he would be able to remove the wound completely, but it was certainly better than nothing.

As Yamamoto began to stir, Ryohei stopped healing him, panting heavily and sweating with effort. He was glad to see that some of the others were also beginning to wake.

Yamamoto didn't rise when he woke, he simply turned his head to the side. He saw the tired looking Ryohei and grinned warmly.

"I wonder which of us looks the worst," he joked.

Ryohei grinned in return and offered out his hand.

"I'd say we were pretty much even at this point," Ryohei responded.

Yamamoto looked at the outstretched hand and took it firmly, pulling himself slowly to his feet with Ryohei's help. He winced in pain as he felt the wound on his back, and then remembered being thrown off his feet by an explosion. Apparently he had been just close enough to the building at the time to be caught in the blast. He imagined that it had actually been far worse a moment ago, before Ryohei had healed him.

"Thanks, Ryohei. What about the others?"

Yamamoto looked about him, feeling more and more relieved as the last of the people he had escaped with began to stir. He had managed to save them. They weren't unharmed; but they _were_ alive.

"Xanxus and Bel are searching the rest of the base and the rest of Varia should be here soon. What about your end. Is everyone else safe? Kyoko, is she alright?"

Yamamoto noticed the urgency in Ryohei's voice as the subject of his sister came up and was glad that he was able to give good news, at least in that case.

"Kyoko, Haru and the rest are safe. They're with Mukuro, Chrome and Lambo. You already know that Hana's away on reconnaissance with Bianchi. As for Hibari and Tsuna…I have no idea."

Ryohei sighed in relief, his eyes brimming with emotion.

"Thank God. Wait. What about octopus head?"

Yamamoto knew that was coming. Knew Ryohei would pick up on the fact that Yamamoto of all people had left Gokudera out of the conversation. He also knew that Ryohei needed to be briefed about their situation.

"Gokudera was taken hostage by Urumeki a little over 15 minutes ago. We were too late to save him."

Yamamoto turned his head away as he spoke, reminded once again of his failure.

"Gokudera…But how? HE'S EXTREMELY STRONG!" Ryohei shouted emotionally.

Yamamoto knew that Ryohei was particularly close to Gokudera among the guardians, although most times he hid it well, so he wasn't shocked by the outburst. He explained as best as he could, making sure to keep the emotion he was truly feeling from his voice. But despite how hard he tried, to his own ears he sounded furious.

"There were two bodies there. So we think he faced at least three of Urumeki's strongest by himself. He was probably hurt…"

Yamamoto hid the pain he was feeling from his face. There was no time for him to feel sorry for himself and brood about failing Gokudera when he needed to plan how to get him back.

"We should keep moving. There may still be survivors we haven't found yet. Think you can heal a few more?" Yamamoto questioned.

Ryohei, ignoring the fact that Yamamoto had blatantly changed the subject, made a face as though he was affronted. He rolled the sleeves of his shirt up and headed towards the rest of Yamamoto's injured group.

"What an extremely stupid question!" he shouted enthusiastically, summoning his box beast to his side.

* * *

Five minutes later the completed Varia, Ryohei, Yamamoto and even Hibari were reunited. They all stood silently with grim expressions, but most eyes were fixed on Ryohei. He looked exhausted and was now leaning heavily on Yamamoto. He had reached his limit, although he was far too stubborn to admit it to the others. He had healed far more people than he was used to, all in the space of twenty minutes, and it was taking its toll.

But they had done it. They had saved all who could be saved, although not all of their wounds had been tended. Some of the uninjured tended their fellow family members and even tended to the wounds of their enemy.

Yamamoto felt relieved that they had managed to save them, but those who had perished weighted on his heart. People he had known, shared a home with. His family. His friends. Gone in the blink of an eye. All due to one person.

Yamamoto felt his thoughts turn dark. It was a rare occurrence but it happened now and again.

His desire to kill someone.

Years before it was still a game to him; playing mafia. But now it couldn't be more real. Gokudera had been taken from him…and now Tsuna was missing.

While evacuating the survivors the group had stumbled on a vicious looking Hibari who was busy beating one of the Urumeki family's men. Yamamoto had managed to stop Hibari from killing the poor man, but he was too late to save his now broken nose. Even after Hibari had skulked further away the man still screamed out the same words.

"I don't know where they are!"

It was then that Yamamoto understood Hibari's act. He had been trying to squeeze out Urumeki's location from one of his men. He was still trying to repay the favour to Gokudera it seemed.

No one had seen Tsuna on their way around the base. Yamamoto fervently hoped he wasn't trapped in the basement of the burning building.

However, almost as if on cue, Yamamoto heard a voice sound out in the distance. A voice he recognised anywhere. A smile tugged at Yamamoto's lips as he turned and addressed the person waving at them in the distance.

"We were starting to worry you know."

TO BE CONTINUED

**I love Ryohei. He doesn't get enough screen time in the manga lol. Had to include that little snippet about Hana in there :3 (I burst out laughing when Ryohei found out that he dates her in the future. It was seriously unexpected that he could woo someone of the opposite sex. I imagine it involved boxing somehow. First date= going to a boxing match. =A=' I can totally see it…).**

**Next chapter may be up soon too. (This progress is beginning to scare me). Until then, mail me or review. Mata Ne!**


	18. Chapter 18 Revelations

**Chapter 18? Check! Wow I cant believe that I'm getting close to the 20****th**** chapter. Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters of KHR but I do own Urumeki, Lucca and Hideaki.**

Chapter 18- Revelations

The figures drew closer to the group and the majority of them sighed sighs of relief.

"I'm glad to see that everyone is safe," said an ash covered Tsuna as he walked closer.

He was accompanied by his own group of survivors and Yamamoto was glad to see a rather nervous looking Irie mixed in between them. He was glad that the bespectacled man had made it out safely after his heroic display inside the base. Yamamoto saw more familiar figures among the group and felt himself smiling in relief. But all too quickly he was reminded of those who died in the battle.

As the two groups met and mixed there was laughter and even crying as friends reunited with friends. Yamamoto motioned for Lussuria to support Ryohei in his stead and stepped forward to meet Tsuna. Without a single word he pulled him into a friendly embrace. Tsuna's face blushed red at Yamamoto's hug and he patted his friends back, unsure what else he should be doing in the situation. He was a grown man being hugged by another grown man after all. It was awkward to say the least. At least it was for him. Yamamoto didn't seem particularly bothered with showing his affection.

"You really know how to keep someone on edge Tsuna. Even I have a limit to my faith you know."

Tsuna's expression softened as he felt the slightest tremble in Yamamoto's hands on his back. It was rare for Yamamoto to show such emotion. The day's events had obviously taken their toll on him. He had encountered shock after shock.

"Don't worry Takeshi. I have no intention of bowing out of this fight until Hayato's back by my side," he told Yamamoto confidently, before turning to the rest of the group and addressing them, "Mukuro and the rest are half a mile away from here. It would be best if we moved a little closer to them so we can arrange a rendezvous. We have a lot to talk about, and if my theory is right, not a lot of time to figure out a plan."

The group nodded their consent, except Xanxus and Hibari, who looked as if they could care less. They looked ready to move out at Tsuna's say so. But before Tsuna did so, he moved to where Ryohei now sat on the grass, noting the look of complete exhaustion on his friends face. Ryohei noticed his presence in front of him and smiled when Tsuna held out a hand.

"Ready for round two?" Tsuna asked him, a serious expression on his face.

Ryohei gave a short laugh and grasped his boss' hand firmly, pulling himself up with some effort. He stood on his feet, still clasping Tsuna's hand in his.

"Do you even have to ask, little bro?"

* * *

When Lambo saw Tsuna in the distance there was no stopping him from running for his 'older brother' and throwing his arms around him. When he started crying Tsuna felt his heart tighten, and when seconds later he cried out Gokudera's name, Tsuna's suspicions were confirmed. Lambo had been told, and he was not taking the news well. Tsuna held the young boy gently and stroked his pitch black hair as he cried into Tsuna's shirt. He looked at the others as he did so, noting the depressed faces. Haru's eyes were red, as if she had been crying, and Chrome looked glum, whereas Mukuro looked the same as always, managing to look completely indifferent even though he supported the wounded Spanner, who proceeded to give Tsuna a rather weak peace sign. Tsuna nodded to him and gave him a wide smile, glad that Nuts had succeeded in taking him to safety.

It was then that he saw her.

Kyoko, with tears in her eyes. She looked relieved at seeing him safe and moved forward to meet Tsuna, almost running in her eagerness. Seeing Lambo, still weeping sadly in Tsuna's arms, she seemed to resist throwing her own arms around him. She resorted to standing in front of him and giving him a beautiful smile which she hoped convened the entirety of her feelings at seeing him return safely. When Tsuna brushed his hand gently against her face, she moved into it and covered his own hand with hers, entwining their fingers.

Two minutes later, when everyone had eventually finished recounting their tales to one another, Tsuna spoke in a tone that befitted the leader, full of the confidence and authority that he used to lack in his youth.

"Now that we're together we need to figure out a plan. The fire department have the fire covered but we have responsibilities of our own. Hayato fought hard to protect us and now its our turn to look out for him. We have to get him back."

"The question is, how?" Lussuria asked sensibly.

However, before Tsuna was allowed the time to answer, Mukuro's voice cut in.

"Ku fu fu. Surely the question should be- why was he taken in the first place?"

The group fell quiet as they pondered on Mukuro's question. Until Yamamoto spoke, his tone surprisingly detached, especially considering it was Gokudera they were talking about.

"I doubt Urumeki is the type of guy to take hostages. I mean, look what he's capable of," Yamamoto started, waving his hand to indicate the burning building in the background.

"Yeah. The guy doesn't even care about his own men," Ryohei continued, his tone one of clear disgust.

"Isn't it obvious that he was taken because he holds some value to that Urumeki guy," Fran asked rather lethargically, but rationally all the same.

"You mean. He took him because he knew that we'd be extremely annoyed about it or something?" Ryohei asked curiously.

Yamamoto shook his head at this. He had a feeling that wasn't the case, even though it was a more than plausible rationale.

"I don't think that's it. If Urumeki wanted to cause us to panic, then the rational move would be to go after Tsuna. But its almost like he went after Gokudera specifically. I think he _needed _Gokudera for some other reason," Yamamoto reasoned seriously, finding it hard to keep the feeling from his voice.

When Mukuro clapped rather childishly from the side, Yamamoto knew that he had answered correctly.

"At last. Someone with a mite of sense."

Mukuro said nothing more, but stood, cross-armed, with a knowing smirk plastered on his face. It was as though he had already figured it all out already. Yamamoto suspected it was the case.

"VOOIIIIII! Then why take the fucking kid?" Squalo yelled energetically.

Surprisingly it was Xanxus who responded, and when he spoke all eyes turned on him.

"The keys," he said simply, eyes closed and arms crossed, looking as cool as ever.

At those two words, Yamamoto's eyes widened in realization. Suddenly , it all made sense to him. But he was surprised when he heard Tsuna speak from next to him, still holding Lambo tenderly.

"I was afraid of that. Hayato warned me something like this might happen. That's why I had to go back inside and get this," Tsuna said, pulling an ornate key from his trouser pocket.

It seemed that Tsuna, the Varia and most of the guardians knew what that meant, but it took some time to dawn on Ryohei. When he finally understood he punched his palm with a fist.

"Ohhh! So you were talking about t_hose_ keys."

At this, all eyes seemed to turn to him and study him closely. Some of the eyes looked at him pitifully, some critically and some just looked at him as though he was the greatest simpleton they had ever met. But Ryohei stayed oblivious and grinned to himself, proud that he was finally more or less on the same page as the rest of the group.

"Taking him was probably the easier option compared to capturing Tsuna, even if he did put up one heck of a fight," Irie stated quietly.

Tsuna shook his head at that.

"No. It had nothing to do with me. I entrusted everything about the Ark to Hayato and Reborn. He was probably the perfect person to take. He knows where all of the keys are…as well as the Ark," he informed the rest of the group sombrely, angry at himself that his actions caused his best friend to be captured.

"But he would never tell Urumeki anything. I mean this is Gokudera we're talking about here. It took me three months to get his birthday out of him when we were kids," Yamamoto assured the group.

Tsuna nodded in agreement, but his face remained grim.

"I don't think Hayato would tell them…under normal circumstances."

"What do you mean Tsuna. Wait…"Tsuna continued, and the faces of most of the group turned grim once more.

"There's no doubt that Hayato already figured this all out before we even thought of it. There's no doubt that he didn't tell Urumeki anything. That's why I think this explosion was meant to break Hayato. I think Urumeki let him watch the whole thing to try and squeeze something out of a broken Hayato."

"That's horrible," Kyoko's voice piped up from the edge of the group, her voice full of emotion.

"But if that's true then we can give Gokudera a message somehow. If its him then he's bound to be looking out for something. We need to make him realize that we aren't dead, make him keep fighting on his end until we can get there," Yamamoto said enthusiastically.

The group considered this and most of them seemed deep in thought about how they could get their message to Gokudera. But they seemed to be struggling.

Surprisingly it was Hibari that came up with the solution. He whistled suddenly, and a minute later Hibird perched on his finger, singing the old Namimori school song as cheerfully as he had years before, unaware that he was entrusted with such an important task. Hibari spared no time in thrusting his finger upwards, compelling Hibird to take flight, and while everyone else was busy looking at the bird in flight, Hibari spoke.

"It's your move Gokudera Hayato."

* * *

Although the sight before him on the screen was a horrible one for him to behold, Gokudera found it hard to turn his attention away from it. He couldn't stop staring at the climbing flames, couldn't help himself from imagining his family members burning to death or simply dying from asphyxiation.

He struggled in his chair once more, as though he could actually break free with a little wiggling.

Urumeki stared t him with fascination, tilting his head occasionally, as an animal would if it saw its prey doing something strange.

"YOU FUCKING BASTARD! I'LL KILL YOU! LET ME OUT OF THIS FUCKING CHAIR SO I CAN BREAK YOUR FUCKING NECK!" Gokudera screamed, still thrashing wildly in his chair, tears springing to his eyes as he considered the possibility that his boss and his friends were dead.

He heard Urumeki tut patronizingly and imagined himself biting through the old man's jugular.

"Now why would I let you out of the chair if you plan to do that to me? That would be the height of foolishness now wouldn't it?" he said condescendingly as he rose from his own chair and started forward. He stood in front of Gokudera and bent down to his eye level and then tugged Gokudera's chin forward so he was close enough to actually smell the trace of mint on his breath. Gokudera spat at him, almost catching him in the eye. Urumeki smirked at this, and wiped the spit off his face calmly. Then he slapped Gokudera across the face, hard, causing Gokudera to bite his tongue and draw blood.

"You see boy. This is what happens when you cross me. This is what your arrogance and stubbornness has caused. You have caused the demise of the Vongola family. You!" Urumeki whispered to him savagely.

Gokudera felt numb. Was it true? Were they all dead because of him?

The Tenth…Yamamoto…Lambo…Ryohei…

He felt empty. He didn't want to believe it, wanted to believe that they had gotten out. But even the Vongola couldn't survive an explosion.

Or could they?

Something in the corner of the television screen suddenly drew his attention. Something yellow drifting around over the burning frame of the building.

Suddenly Gokudera realized what it was. He could think of only one thing it could be.

Hibird!

It was a sign. A message from Hibari.

'_Does that mean that the others might be ok too?_' he found himself hoping to himself.

He hid his relief and maintained the pained look on his face, careful to make sure that Urumeki wouldn't see something in his attitude.

Gokudera bent his head in a show of mock despair, careful to hide his grin away from his captor. He couldn't afford to let Urumeki notice what he had after all. Anyone of the Vongola enemies would know all too well what a small yellow bird flying around the building would mean. Would know that Hibari almost always travelled with that bird. Gokudera himself could only see it as a sign that Hibari at least was alive and well, and what's more that he suspected that Gokudera had been made to watch the explosion. And suddenly Gokudera knew what he needed to do.

Urumeki meanwhile, unaware of Gokudera's revelation, looked at what he supposed was a broken shell of a man. To him, the bent over figure that Gokudera now presented suggested to Urumeki that he had finally destroyed the bravado, the cockiness that Gokudera represented. Therefore he was rather startled when he heard a loud laugh erupt from Gokudera's lips and saw his back shake from a severe case of the giggles of all things. To say that Urumeki was confused by Gokudera's reaction would have been a serious understatement. The man he thought he had finally succeeded in crushing was laughing away without a care in the world. And it angered him.

"WHAT IS SO AMUSING? STOP THAT! BE QUIET!" he screamed over the laughter, spit flying from his lips in his rage.

When Gokudera still wouldn't stop laughing he pulled him upright by the collar and hit him hard across the face, his rings cutting Gokudera's face with the impact.

Gokudera didn't wince with the impact, but he did stop laughing. But a cocky smirk was fixed on his face, a smirk that suggested he knew something that Urumeki didn't.

"You stupid fuck," he said mockingly.

Urumeki recoiled as if he had been hit. Gokudera's attitude was making him nervous. He knew something, something that Urumeki didn't. Knew something, and was laughing at his expense.

Urumeki bit his lip tightly, drawing blood and his pupils were mere pinpricks. He looked like a man possessed.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? TELL ME!" he screamed, sounding increasingly like a child throwing a tantrum. Gokudera figured he was only a step away from stomping his feet while demanding an answer.

Gokudera chuckled, and even though they were still handcuffed he managed to position his hands in a mock innocent pose.

"I haven't done anything. Everything is because of you. You're the one that's ruined your own chances you fucking fruit loop. I had nothing to do with it. I guess I have you to thank. Grazie," Gokudera said in a mocking tone, patronizingly bowing his head.

Urumeki's head drooped as though he'd finally realized what Gokudera was so cheerful about.

"No…it cant be," he mumbled quietly, fingers clasped tightly into fists.

Gokudera laughed once more at his enemy, taking pleasure from the fact that their positions had been reversed so quickly.

"Oh, it fucking can. The last key, the one that starts and finishes everything, was in that building. Which you oh so fucking conveniently just blew up. Good job," Gokudera said mockingly, before his voice turned deathly serious and his expression was one of murderous intent, "Every man and woman you've killed today, every good person that you've sacrificed for this fucking hunt of yours- that's how many times I'll make you suffer Urumeki. You'd do well to keep that in fucking mind…"

TO BE CONTINUED

**This one was kind of a long one this time. But I have to say that I enjoyed writing it, although it was a pain to write the Vongola meeting it just struck me now that I only gave characters I like lines… **

**I also hope that people understood my intent by making Ryohei call Tsuna "little bro." I, for one, can imagine him doing that in the future if Tsuna and Kyoko got it on. Either that or being insanely overprotective…**

**Thanks for reading as usual, and feel free to mail me or review the chapter. I really appreciate them all (they're a much needed ego-boost!). Mata Ne '3'b**


	19. Chapter 19 Resolve

**Osu! This is probably the longest I've ever pondered over a chapter. But it's finally here! I really can't believe that this series will be on chapter 20 next! That is a huge achievement for me :D Thanks so much for your continued support guys, you rock! **

Chapter 19- Unwavering Resolve

As the minutes passed by, Urumeki's reaction to Gokudera's revelation was hardly what he expected. He had gotten momentarily angry, but he had managed to calm himself down. If anything the calm Urumeki was far more intimidating than the fanatical. It unnerved Gokudera to see the same calm smile reappear on his face once more, replacing the wild expression that Gokudera had become so accustomed to.

Gokudera began to feel nervous.

Urumeki shook his head from side to side, tutting all the while, making a big show of himself. When he spoke, Gokudera felt a chill run down his spine.

"Well, well, dear boy. It seems we've reached an impasse. But I must say, even after you told me your little secret, the cards do seem to be in my favour. Do you think me a fool, boy? Do you think that you could fool me with your little plan? You see, I am well aware that these keys of yours are special, and I know that you would do your utmost to keep them safe. Am I expected to believe that you have not taken measures against this kind of occurrence? That you have left them vulnerable? I have studied you too well to believe that," Urumeki stated, a cruel smile now forming on his face.

Urumeki made a show of examining his nails, making sure to keep his gaze away from Gokudera for the meantime. Keeping his words in until Gokudera could take the silence no longer.

Gokudera knew something was coming, and it couldn't be good.

And right on cue…

Urumeki snapped his fingers, forcing Hideaki to stand to attention.

"Hideaki, you'll escort me to the Vongola base and find that key. Kill everyone you encounter. Bonus points for every killing you manage to capture on our little screen here. I'm sure Hayato here will be dying to see the reward for his defiance. Oh, and make sure to give both the rain guardian and the Vongola boss a particularly gruesome send-off will you," Urumeki said, his tone sadistically cheerful.

"Yes master," Hideaki said monotonously.

Hearing the cruel command escape from Urumeki's lips Gokudera started to struggled against his bonds, the manacles scraping painfully against the skin on his forearms. He struggled to free himself, even though he knew that he couldn't escape. He kicked against the chair legs, as if by chance the force behind his kicks would manage to break the legs.

"Don't! Don't you fucking touch them! I'll fucking kill you, I'll kill all of you if you touch a single hair on their fucking heads! You better kill me now if you want to get out of this alive Urumeki, because I'll come for you! Mark my fucking words, I'll annihilate you and your insane family!"

At Gokudera's outburst Urumeki stopped in his tracks rather ominously and then turned on his heel. His expression was one of pure hatred toward Gokudera.

"Now why would I want to kill you? We've saved the best entertainment for last haven't we? Why it's a once in a lifetime chance to see the death of your family members on the big screen. We wouldn't want you to miss that. Oh and about that other thing, what did you say? Hunting me down and killing my family now was it? I don't think that'll be a problem either. Hideaki, before we leave for the Vongola base, I have one more job for you. Break his legs."

* * *

Urumeki shut the door behind him with a definitive slam. This was where things were finally starting to go his way, and Urumeki planned to keep them going in his favour. Instead of continuing down the corridor as a busy man as himself should have done he stayed outside the door momentarily, just listening out. And then he heard it. The screams of agony that he had been aching to hear.

Urumeki grinned to himself as the screams of pain resounded through his ears like a melody, and then turned on his heel and strode down the hallway, whistling cheerfully as though Christmas had come early for him. His only regret was that he didn't have the time to watch…

* * *

Lucca Urumeki, or rather Matteo Vincenti, was dreaming, and he was well aware of it. After all, the smiling Cesa in front of him couldn't possibly be real.

Fifteen long years had passed and he would no longer be the child that he saw in his dreams. Cesare would be eighteen now, a young man. But Matteo knew that he appeared like that in his dreams because he simply didn't know what his little brother actually looked like. He remembered him as an energetic and rather spoiled child who had followed him devotedly, but the years had passed almost like torture. His brother was almost an enigma to him now. All he had to connect himself to Cesa were the letters. The ones he had received every year now for the past fifteen years. Although they were brief, and didn't really tell him much, he treasured them. Every tiny detail, every single word was precious to him, because they were proof that his brother was alive, that they still had the chance to be together once more.

In his dream Matteo continued to play with his younger brother.

It was a rather painful dream, one that made his chest hurt. Literally. His chest felt as though it were on fire. He tried not to dwell on the pain, tried to turn his attention back to his dream, tried to concentrate on playing catch with his brother. But then he started hearing things as well. His name being uttered in a hard female voice.

"Matteo…Matteo."

The voice continued.

Until, suddenly, Matteo felt a sharp sting on his cheek this time. He had been sure that it wasn't possible to feel pain in a dream, but he was feeling it in droves. Unless…

Matteo's eyes flittered open and then closed once more as the light in the room practically seared his eyes. When he opened his eyes once more, casually blinking away the tears caused by the glaring lights, he searched around the room for his attacker. He was certain that he had just been slapped. Hard.

He looked to the right of his bed and came face to face with his assaulter, who was looking particularly unabashed for someone who had hit him while he was sleeping.

Sitting rather delicately in a wheelchair adorned with butterfly prints was someone Matteo had grown close to over the fifteen years in the Urumeki family. The one person who had made his life tolerable, and to some extent happy, as the years progressed. The only person he had ever come to trust under the roof.

She showed no reaction whatsoever when he came to face her. She sat in her chair, simply looking at him with an inexpressive face. She wasn't exactly beautiful in the traditional sense but from a certain angle she appeared strikingly pretty. Her unsmiling face suggested that when she did smile it was a rather wonderful sight. Matteo had seen it only twice in fifteen years, but he remembered them. Her smile had stayed with him for fifteen years. It was a precious treasure that he had managed to salvage from his long captivity.

Matteo studied her frame, bound to an expensive looking wheelchair and found himself wondering how exactly she had managed to slap him in the first place. But before he even opened his mouth to ask her, he was casually interrupted with an explanation anyway.

"I hit you with my purse," she said monotonously, raising her bag as some kind of proof.

"I…I see. Well…why are you here?" Matteo asked her quizzically, searching her face for answers.

She looked at him calmly, her face a puzzle and then gave her answer in an unfeeling voice.

"I lost at rock-paper-scissors."

Matteo was lost for words. He didn't actually whether she was joking or not .With her he could never be too careful. Unsure of what to say, Matteo played along.

"So there's no chance that you actually came here to look after me just because you wanted to?" he asked in a mock-hurt tone.

"None," she said simply.

"Ha ha ha. So cold," Matteo laughed warmly, stopping himself abruptly when his chest began to pain him.

He freed a single arm from under the silk bed sheets and extended it towards his companion's face, who at first seemed to sly away from his touch, but after a while stopped herself from moving away. Matteo trailed his hand up against the side of her face and captured a loose strand of her long silky black hair. He curled the strand of hair with his fingers tenderly, watching the expression on her face change slightly as he coiled it around his fingers.

"I missed you, Ageha," Matteo said gently, his voice almost a whisper.

At hearing Matteo's words the young woman called Ageha bowed her head suddenly but placed her own hand over Matteo's, entwining their fingers.

"…pid."

Matteo, even as close as he was to her failed to hear her response.

"What?"

"I said you were stupid Matteo! Who the hell told you to get hurt, stupid? Do you have any idea how worried some of the maids were at seeing you beaten up in that jerk's room?! Stupid!"

Matteo was taken aback. He had never heard Ageha raise her voice to that kind of volume before, and he could tell she wasn't used to it herself as her breathing became ragged and emotional.

"S..sorry," was all he could think of saying for the time being.

"Hmph."

Ageha turned her head away, hiding the emotion that was clear on her face.

"Was it really the maids that were worried, or was it you? I know that you have a habit of spying on me Ageha."Matteo focused his gaze on the young woman in front of him, hoping that his eyes could somehow squeeze out her true feelings for once. She had a nasty habit of pretending she didn't care. In fact Matteo realised that she was quite similar to someone else he knew.

"Someone has to be there to save your ass when half-dead pretty boys manage to kick it," she said harshly, her voice far more convincing than the look in her dark eyes.

"You let him leave just like that?"

Ageha turned to look straight into Matteo's eyes, this time hiding nothing.

"You know I wouldn't hurt someone who was so important to you. Besides, I assumed it was all part of the plan. I mean, I could sense that you were still alive, so there was no need to confront him," she explained, straightening out a crease in her skirt simultaneously.

"I see. And if you hadn't been able to sense me? What then," Mattteo asked, well aware of the answer he would receive.

"I would kill him. He's not important to me Matteo. If you weren't here, then I would have already killed him by now. He cant be here for a good reason. Besides, even though I made sure that he or his large cat thing couldn't sense me, I kept a close eye on him, so-to-speak. He didn't make it very far."

That last statement caught Matteo's attention instantly and his heart sank. Even though he knew the answer, he couldn't help himself from asking.

"What do you mean Ageha?"

"He was caught and taken away. They were too far away to follow with my senses so I just came back here to take care of this idiot who cant look after himself even though he's old enough to know better."

Matteo leaped out of his bed and landed with a sharp intake of breath. He doubled over in pain as the wound on his chest screamed in protest. Ageha moved herself over to his side and stroked his arm gently, as though it would help with the pain somehow. Although Matteo did find his thoughts drifting away from the pain, wondering why Ageha was being so pleasant suddenly. Even though he was in pain it wasn't like her to show such kindness. Almost as if to deter that strain of thought he felt her pinch his arm painfully and he yelped unconsciously.

"That's for being stupid. You're still injured dimwit. There's only so much that my healing can do so take it slow. Honestly, men."

Matteo rubbed at his now sore arm, frowning slightly. Though he was dying to protest about her harsh treatment of him, Matteo pushed it to the back of his mind and decided to concentrate on the more important things. Gokudera for one.

"Ageha. Do you know what happened to Gokudera-san? Where they took him?" he asked, the panic clear in his voice.

Ageha looked at him briefly and then nodded with a sigh.

"I suppose there's no helping it is there. You're going to go in there guns blazing whether I like it or not aren't you. Fine. See if I care. I'm not patching you up again you hear. I heard some of the men talking about it a little while ago."

"Some of the men? Talking about what," Matteo pressed with urgency.

"They said something like 'his screamin' was intense yo! Guy was pretty banged up 'fore that and the boss jus' tells his kid to break his legs an' all. Poor bastard will be feelin' that in the morning' I tells ya'. It went something like that, but with more atrocious grammar."

Matteo, could only prevent himself from laughing at Ageha's less than impressive impersonation by focusing his attention entirely on the fact that Gokudera had been harmed once more. And once again Matteo hadn't been able to do anything to prevent it.

"Shit!" he said violently, banging his clenched fist against the wall, "this is all my fault! I was supposed to get him out, not get him into more trouble."

"Don't be foolish. There was nothing you could do was there? I mean, he had knocked you out. It was that guy's decision to go it alone, not yours. It isn't your fault that it ended that way," Ageha said gently, trying to comfort Matteo in her own way.

But it didn't make him feel any better.

"I cant believe that they broke his…well that settles it."

"Settles what? Oh no. I know that look. That's the look you get when you're about to do something completely stupid, like when you hid Hideaki's shoes ten years ago. Think this through Matteo. There's more at stake here than just you. Think about your brother. Please."

She was practically pleading with him now, her voice uncharacteristically flustered. Matteo saw her panic and bent down slowly so his eyes were at the same level as hers. He leaned closer and touched his forehead to his, cradling the back of her head with his hand, entwining his fingers in her hair once more. She went silent, her face blushing slightly, but her hand grasped hard at the hem of his shirt as though to stop him from taking the action she knew he was going to take.

"Matteo, don't," she pleaded.

"This all started because I couldn't keep my mouth shut. He's suffered like this because of me. I have to put things right. I owe Hayato that. Plus, I wouldn't like Cesa to see me acting like a coward by using him as an excuse not to get involved. It's about time that I stopped hiding and started fighting this war along with everyone else."

TO BE CONTINUED

**I really wanted to introduce the character of Ageha earlier on, but when I thought back on it I think she fits in here the best. I'm only just introducing her character here and I hope that the character managed to leave an impression. I just want to make it clear though, that she is not going to be as useless as most of the females in KHR :D Let me know what you thought of her (here's hoping she doesn't come across as a Mary-Sue lol).**

**So Matteo is finally joining the battle (at last :D ) and I'm really looking forward to giving him some battle scenes. **

**As usual review or message me your thoughts! Ja Ne!**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS FROM KHR, BUT URUMEKI, MATTEO/LUCCA, HIDEAKI AND AGEHA ARE MINE!**


	20. Chapter 20 Alliance?

**Oh my God. Ah I have to say that it feels good to have this chapter over and done with. You wouldn't believe how many rewrites and editing went into this chapter before I was remotely satisfied. I cant believe I've actually made it to chapter 20 and accumulated over 100 reviews for something I pulled out of my ass! You guys really are the best. Thanks so much for supporting me this far. I hope you keep reading this series. As a special treat for you, this chapter is the longest one yet so enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: So apparently I don't own KHR. Have you heard about this?**

Chapter 20- Alliance?

Gokudera drifted in and out of consciousness, the pain from his combined wounds preying on the little stamina that he had left. In the few precious moments of lucidity that he encountered, the same thoughts came to the forefront of his mind like clockwork.

"_I have to get out. I have to get back to them."_

Almost unconsciously Gokudera began to rock the chair weakly, from side to side, occasionally finding an odd spurt of strength to push himself harder. He rocked the chair again and again, focusing all his attention on the chair and avoiding all contact with the large television screen in front of him. He knew that he couldn't afford to be swayed at that time. The television was a distraction that he couldn't afford to look at.

The harder he rocked the chair the more he felt like screaming out in pain. But all that emerged from his mouth was a weak whimper. His energy was almost completely spent. He didn't even have enough left to scream.

Panting heavily from the effort Gokudera gave it one final push, throwing all his weight to the side. The chair tilted and then teetered almost as if it were in slow motion. It crashed to the ground almost lethargically, dragging the half conscious Gokudera with it.

This time Gokudera managed to muster the energy for an earth-shattering scream as his legs collided with the hard floor.

And then his world went black.

* * *

Matteo took a shambling run towards the door, holding his injured stomach gingerly, but stopped still in his tracks when he heard Ageha's authoritative voice echo loudly around the room.

"You get back here right now! We don't have the time or the resources for you to stupidly play the hero and get your ass kicked again. So you get back here, take a seat and help me think of a plan, or so help me I'll…"Ageha started threateningly, her voice sinister and menacing.

Matteo turned to look at his female friend, his eyes pleading with her to let him go, but she shook her head with a finality that almost made him pout. He knew she was right of course, they did need some kind of plan, but that didn't stop him from frowning with annoyance as he trudged back to his bed. He sat himself on the bed, wincing at the pain it caused him and then finally smiled sheepishly at Ageha.

"You're right. Sorry. You know how I get about these things," Matteo apologised awkwardly.

"Yes. You get single-minded and stupid. Luckily I'm rational enough for the both of us, and I already have a plan."

Matteo almost laughed at her resourcefulness. Instead, he leaned down and kissed the top of her head affectionately. He was rather pleased when she flushed red all the way to her ears and lowered her head shyly but decided not to comment on it for fear of his well-being. During their childhood it had taken him moments and a trip to the infirmary to learn that Ageha didn't handle embarrassment well.

"What would I do without you?" he asked gently, with a warm smile teasing at his lips.

"Well. You probably wouldn't have survived for this long that's for sure. Now shut up and listen," Ageha responded with her usual neutral tone, finally getting back into the flow of her personality.

Matteo listened to Ageha's orders and then raised a hand to his forehead in a mock salute.

"Roger," he said before pretending to zip his mouth shut.

Ageha rolled her eyes at his action and then leaned forward in her chair, her hands folded neatly in her lap. Matteo found himself leaning forward unconsciously, as if he was expecting to hear some kind of secret.

"This isn't going to be easy, but if you have your heart set out on getting that guy out of here, then I suppose we don't have much of a choice. First off, we're not exactly in the best shape to save someone else's ass let alone smuggle him out of here without anyone noticing," Ageha started, her eyes twinkling with the same excitement Matteo knew she always felt when she was devising plans.

"I suppose I could use my ice to clear a path for a few seconds," Matteo suggested.

Ageha shook her head in a clear dismissal of his idea.

"No, that wont work in our favour for very long. You cant carry him out while having to use that skill at the same time. You'd exhaust your stamina in no time in that state, and it's obvious that I cant exactly carry him out," Ageha explained, gesturing at her wheelchair bitterly.

At Ageha's words Matteo was once more reminded of the gravity of their situation, the enormity of the task at hand. It would be far harder to help Gokudera and to escape his prison than he thought.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" he asked, his tone far more curt than he had intended it to be.

When Ageha smirked smugly at his question, her eyes glinting with mischief, Matteo felt himself smiling in return. She obviously had the answer.

"Simple. We don't have to do anything. We just have to invite the Vongola family over to retrieve their lost goods. With my father and brother gone it's the perfect opportunity for the Vongola to retaliate and start a party of their own, wouldn't you say?"

Matteo was lost for words. This was her plan? To get the Vongola to come to Gokudera? Then something she said struck him. Father and brother she had said. Matteo pondered over this. It was as though he had completely forgotten that the girl he loved was the daughter and sister of his enemy. All this time he had convinced himself that she wasn't a part of that dreaded family, that she didn't share that man's blood. But she was an Urumeki.

"Ageha. Are you…I don't think…" he started, unable to find the right words to put his feelings across.

Ageha looked at him calmly, a strange look on her face.

"They aren't my family. Not anymore. They've changed…and so have I. I don't want to be here anymore, I'm just as much of a prisoner as you are. I just want to get out, and if I can help you along the way then it's fine with me whatever we do," Ageha responded to the questions that Matteo hadn't asked.

She had known that he would hesitate because of her ties after all. Ageha was an Urumeki, she would be going against her own flesh and blood to help him, betraying her family. Matteo trusted her with his life, valued her as much as he valued Cesa, but he couldn't bring himself to force Ageha to act against her family, no matter how evil they were. They were the only family she had after all.

"Are you sure you want to do this Ageha?" he found himself asking her.

She looked at him with fierce determination and rather boldly for her, took Matteo's hand in hers. She stared into his eyes and smiled gently at him, stroking her thumb over the back of his hand.

"I'm sure. I've had enough of being in this cage. It's time for me to spread my wings so to speak. Now lets get to business shall we?"

* * *

"Hey. Gokudera Hayato. Wake up. Oi, get up lazy bones."

A comforting voice cut across Gokudera's dreams, a voice that somehow reminded him of her. The woman who had taught him to play the piano as a child. The one he had discovered was his mother far too late. His dreams turned to thoughts of her. He saw her beautiful smile, the kind glint in her eyes when she looked down at him, the delicate way her fingers moved on the piano keys and laced with his when she held his hand, the way she laughed when Gokudera told her a joke. He could remember the way the light reflected off her silky hair when the sun shone through the window, could remember the feel of her skin on his when she had to leave, clutching him tightly to her chest in an embrace that clearly showed what she felt for him.

The voice that spoke to him brought all of the memories flooding back to him. It reminded him so much of her that for a moment he expected to see her before him when he opened his eyes.

But the person who stared back at him when he opened his eyes wasn't her. On the surface she was the complete opposite of what he expected.

The young woman in front of him stared down at Gokudera with an unimpressed look on her face, her eyebrow raised in a presumptuous manner. Gokudera, for some reason irked at her behaviour, responded with his own sour look, and was further annoyed when she simply smirked.

He took a moment to study the woman in front of him, his eyes being occasionally drawn to the wheelchair she was seated in and then finally settling on her natural face. As far as he was concerned she was unremarkable, the only thing that stood out being both her confidence and the fact that she was in a wheelchair.

Gokudera felt no reason to be alarmed by her though, strangely he sensed no apparent threat from her, she didn't seem hostile. If anything she appeared more amused than she was belligerent.

Before he even thought about what he was doing, Gokudera tried to raise himself into a seated position, completely forgetting about the extent of his injuries.

He gasped with pain when his legs responded to his movements. His vision began to blur around the edges as the pain registered in his brain. Gokudera clenched his teeth together and balled his uninjured hand into a tight fist as his body convulsed with the combined pain. Even when the young woman's voice rang out over the room, it wasn't enough to draw his attention away from the pain he felt.

"I wouldn't try to move just yet if I were you. You aren't exactly in the best shape," the young woman said plainly, her voice strangely sympathetic although the expression on her face was as impassive as ever.

Gokudera sent a glare her way, unappreciative of her advice.

"Yeah. No shit," he said in response, hissing occasionally from the pain.

The young woman said nothing and just continued to observe him in a way that was eerily familiar, as if she was scrutinizing the actions of a wild animal thrashing about in pain rather than a human being.

Gokudera, ignoring her eyes on him, manoeuvred his body into a position that caused him the least pain and then just lay there momentarily, catching his breath and trying to piece his thoughts together. He remembered rocking the chair over and then losing consciousness, and then dragging himself forward a few paces when he woke. Then he had passed out again. The pattern had repeated itself at least three times before he had woken up in the company of the woman before him. He had made little progress to the door and was disappointed that with all his effort he had only made it that far.

Almost as if she had read his thoughts the young woman spoke out.

"You really are something else. I honestly wasn't expecting to open the door and find you laid out in front of it. To keep going in that kind of state… you must be some kind of monster. I'm impressed," she said, her voice hinting at what did seem like genuine respect for Gokudera.

"So glad I impress. That's exactly what I was fucking going for," Gokudera replied gruffly, uninterested in the compliment he had been paid.

He was startled when she laughed of all things, her voice ringing out around the room. It was an uncontrolled laugh, one that was not restrained in the least. From her appearance Gokudera had not expected her to have such a free laugh. It was as wild as she looked proper. It didn't seem to suit her.

"You really are exactly how he described. I thought he was exaggerating, but I was so wrong," she managed to spit out between chuckles.

This piqued Gokudera's interest. Despite himself he was curious as to who she referred to and before he could stop himself he questioned her.

"Just like _who_ described? Urumeki?"

The young woman stopped laughing at this and her expression resumed it's guardedness.

"No. Matteo told me all about you. I guess this is where I make the big introduction. I'm…" she started.

Gokudera interrupted her.

"I know who you fucking are. You think I haven't done my research on this family? You're Ageha Urumeki, age 22, the daughter of Toshiyuki Urumeki and Ritsuko Urumeki, formerly Ritsuko Kanno. Your parents are divorced, your mother lives in Sapporo. You have one older brother, Hideaki Urumeki; a real piece of work. When you were 7 you fell from the second storey of your estate and broke your spine, causing you to be paralyzed from the waist down and comatose for thirteen weeks. Your father's mental instability was probably caused by this and during the time you were comatose he killed a total of seven people in cold blood, eventually moving on to Matteo's family…and well you probably know all the rest. So how am I doing so far?"

The young woman, who Gokudera had already guessed was Ageha, stared down at him coldly as she processed the extent of Gokudera's information. But then she sneered frostily.

"Not bad. Not bad at all. But you did forget the part where I was _pushed_ from the second floor. Plus, I'm a Sagittarius. I like sunsets, dolphins and sharing my feelings," Ageha responded sarcastically.

Gokudera said nothing, but he was alarmed to find that he was amused by her words and her personality. She wasn't exactly like any other woman he had met. Despite her limitations she was strong, that was obvious. She reminded him of his sister, and to some extent of Lal Mirch. She was a woman who had grown up on a battlefield, just like them.

"Well I'd lay out a welcome to you but I seem to have carelessly gotten my legs broken. Send my fucking regards to your father," Gokudera responded, equally as sarcastically, gesturing lethargically towards his limp legs.

"You have working legs. You should be grateful."

Ageha's words stung. Gokudera hadn't meant to be so careless with his words.

"I apologise," he said genuinely.

Ageha gave him an almost forgiving look before she started to speak once more, her tone serious.

"Accepted. Now as for giving my father a message. What do you say to giving him a big middle finger reception on your own turf?"

Gokudera raised an eyebrow quizzically at her proposition. Was she offering what he thought she was offering? Saying what he thought she was saying?

"What are you…" he started before he was interrupted seconds later.

"I'm saying that me and Matteo are offering to bust you out of here. I'd have thought that to be obvious. But not before we take a few precautionary steps of course," Ageha offered, gesticulating her hands as she moved, obviously excited for some reason.

There was a mischievous glint in her eyes that Gokudera was unable to dismiss. He had seen a similar look in Mukuro's eyes before. It seemed that she got off on chaos, just like he did, and that meant that she was probably as unpredictable as she was dangerous. Could Gokudera afford to trust her, just as he had given Matteo the benefit of the doubt? He wasn't so sure. She didn't seem like she was tricking him and despite the glint in her eyes her face seemed honest. For all he knew, she and Matteo weren't even proper acquaintances. She could be just as unstable as her father, just as evil.

Gokudera resisted the urge to sigh, feeling that it would be a sign of weakness and decided to hold off on making a decision just yet. He needed to know more about what she was proposing before he could make a choice, needed to know more about her mannerisms, her personality before he could even think about trusting the young woman.

"What precautionary steps?" he asked, the first question ticked off his endless list.

Ageha gave a hint of a smile at his question. She was obviously of the mind that he had given her the benefit of the doubt for now, although it wasn't necessarily true just yet. Gokudera simply needed details, and if he needed to pretend to be the naïve young man and 'trust' her then so be it.

"Well. The biggest problem we face is getting you out of here. I mean, two out of three of us cant exactly waltz out of here, for obvious reasons, and I cant imagine Matteo giving both of us the fireman's lift out of here. That means we need someone from the outside to come to the inside and bust you out from there. In short we need your family to save the damsel in distress...oh and you and Matteo too of course."

Gokudera thought over her words, the plan she had proposed. Was it rational? Yes it was. But did it annoy him to have to rely on his family to get him out because he hadn't been able to do it himself. Yes.

Gokudera knew that was the wrong way to think about his situation, knew that he needed to depend on his family as much as they depended on him. But being thought of as the capable one in the family, the dependable one, for so long, had made Gokudera stubborn. He didn't _want_ to rely on his family's strength, didn't want to have them have to save him, but its seemed that in the state he was in this time he would need to.

To momentarily distract himself from this thought Gokudera questioned Ageha instead, asking the one question that stood at the forefront in his mind.

"What's in this for you? What do you stand to gain from letting me go. I mean this is your family, crazy or not."

She didn't hesitate in the slightest, her voice firm but her expression shaded with what seemed like melancholy. At that moment Gokudera could instantly tell that in this case no lie was spoken. Her response was the complete truth.

"Freedom."

Yamamoto watched soberly as the fire service doused the smouldering building, watched as their home collapsed under the pressure of the water from the fire hose.

Their home was gone. The building that Gokudera tried so hard to protect. The _people_ he had tried to protect. Yamamoto clenched his fists as his thoughts returned to the people that had lost their lives that day.

The gunsmith who was drunk more than he was sober.

The cook's assistant with the slight lisp and tendency to over season his food.

The pretty red headed maid who always made sure that there were fresh flowers in Yamamoto's training room every day.

Even Gokudera's secretary was among the dead.

They had lost so much over so little.

When they got Gokudera back, how would he be able to tell him that some of the people he ate lunch with, people he had sparred with, people he wished a good morning, good night, merry Christmas or happy birthday to weren't there anymore.

Yamamoto's thoughts were dark. There was no helping it, after what had happened. But somehow Yamamoto could guess exactly what Gokudera would say to him if he were there at that moment, swear words and all.

"_Why the fuck are you standing here moping around idiot? Listen, I wont tell you not to mourn for those people we lost, hell I'd probably beat the crap out of you if you didn't. But what's important now is to keep everyone else together. Keep them calm. Remember, a fragmented family is a vulnerable family. Make it up to those who died by protecting those who they died to protect."_

"He probably would say something along those lines…not enough swearing though," Yamamoto said, with a half-hearted laugh.

He nearly jumped when he heard a familiar voice emerge behind him. He turned to face the speaker, careful to disguise his mood with a small smile. He couldn't afford to make the leader of the Vongola worry about him on top of all the other things he had to worry about.

"Takeshi. What are you doing back here? I've been looking for you everywhere. The group could need your input on our next steps," Tsuna told his friend, fatigue noticeable in his voice and apparent on his usually youthful face.

Yamamoto gestured his head toward the burning building in the distance and Tsuna's expression quickly changed to one of understanding.

"Somehow it doesn't feel right to pretend that it's not burning to the ground. It was home after all," Tsuna said quietly as he moved to stand next to Yamamoto.

"I want to make them pay for every single beam that burns to the ground, I want to make him pay for every single wound that he caused, every life that he took. "

Tsuna nodded as if he understood and placed a firm hand on Yamamoto' shoulder.

"You want to…but you wont. Because we aren't like him. This family will never sink to his level, I…we'll make sure of that. We'll get through this. We wont forget, but we will move on. Because dwelling on the past will only hurt the future. Come on, you know Hayato would be mad at you for moping about like this. This is where we need to plan our counterattack. Where we plan how to get Hayato back"

Yamamoto turned to look at his friend and noted the grim expression on his face as he spoke about his missing friend. Yamamoto had been so caught up in his own misery that he had almost forgotten that Tsuna had also lost his best friend, the first true friend he had ever made. Yamamoto, ashamed at his own selfish thought process could do nothing but nod his agreement. That pained look on Tsuna's face never sat well with him. It meant that things were far more serious than he first thought to be able to inspire that look. It meant that things had changed, had moved far beyond what they could simply forgive and forget.

Yamamoto was just about to lay a reassuring hand on his young leader's back when a loud shout rang from a distance.

"Oi! Li'l bro! Get your butt back here! We've got big news!" Ryohei's excitable voice rang over the woodland.

Tsuna and Yamamoto turned to face the direction of Ryohei's voice but made no effort to move until he shouted once more With a resigned sigh Tsuna began to run towards the others. Yamamoto gave one last look at the now smouldering ruins and then followed after him.

When he reached the clearing he was surprised to find that everyone who was able were gathered around Spanner who seemed to be in the middle of explaining something to Tsuna.

"It was sent to me little over three minutes ago. It's encrypted too. But nothing I cant handle. To be honest it's actually kind of insulting," Spanner explained, pouting slightly.

Yamamoto approached the group inquisitively.

"What's going on?" he asked to no one in particular.

It was Tsuna who answered him, his expression a strange mix of apprehension and expectation. The expression alone was enough to pique Yamamoto's interest.

"Spanner received an email a while back. It was sent directly into the Vongola database. The mail has Gokudera's mark all over it. He may be trying to contact us!"

TO BE CONTINUED

**It would mean the world to me if you guys review this chapter after you're done reading it, just a simple one telling me what you like or hate about the chapter/series/characters would really give me the boost to keep going. It's my goal to reach 200 before chapter 25! Let's do this!**


	21. Chapter 21 Trust

**Hola amigos. So I've been extremely busy due to work and starting my final year of university so please don't hold it against me that the periods between updates are getting longer. I won't have as much time to write this year due to having to write a buttload of essays as well as a dissertation. I'll try my best to keep these updates coming up, although I can't guarantee any stable pattern in the releases lol. **

**In the meantime thank you to those who reviewed or favourited/ followed the series. It means a lot to us writers to get some of that feedback!**

**So, as a special request I want you guys to offer an OC of your own for me to use in future chapters (one of Urumeki's dudes. Either male or female) so send in your character in a pm or just leave it in a review. I want to see what you guys are capable of thinking up. What kind of character you think would be hanging out with that bag full of cats crazy Urumeki (Avengers ftw!).**

**So without further ado. Enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: I just heard that I'm not the one who owns KHR…frankly this came as a bit of a shock to me…who the hell is Akira Amano?!**

Chapter 21- Trust

He walked through the hallways slowly, careful not to aggravate his wounds, but stumbled occasionally as the pain made itself known. He knew that he was in no shape to do what he was about to do, but he knew that it had to be done. It was just that he was the only liable candidate left was all. Even in the state he was in, it was the only thing he could do to be of assistance for the time being. Not only that, but his actions would help Gokudera and that was enough for him to take that final step, enough to push him to open the door and incapacitate the four guards with his ice, enough for him to momentarily disable the security defences. It was enough for him to take the key from the metal box and replace it with the key to the larder.

He made sure to leave everything as it had been, made sure to reinstall the security measures and then left the room without a sound. He closed the large door shut behind him, took a few steps away, a small head start if need be, and then clicked his fingers.

When no one came after him in the next few seconds Matteo grinned to himself. It had worked, just as he had planned. They had the key, and the guards, unaware that they had even been frozen by him, were oblivious to the fact that they had let it go from under their own noses.

Matteo Vincenti turned on his heel and made his way towards the woman he loved and the man he had swore his loyalty to as a child. For once, things seemed to be heading in their favour.

**~oOo~**

Gokudera couldn't help but stare at the young woman in front of him, and she wasn't exactly making things less awkward as she stared back at him defiantly, a ghost of a smile on her full lips. Gokudera, personally, was trying to analyse her behaviour. Trying to find any chinks in that emotional armour of hers. Trying to find a reason not to go out on a limb and place his trust in her. He was staring at her for a specific reason, but he had the distinct impression that she was staring back so unflinchingly just to annoy him.

And it was working.

Gokudera liked silence, more often than not he craved it back at the Vongola base, but to him the silence between them was nothing short of mocking. As if she stayed quiet because she knew he was analysing her. And she was letting him do just that.

However, before the silence stretched any further, his female companion spoke, her tone and the slight tilt of her head the epitome of impish curiosity.

"Just what are you thinking Gokudera Hayato?" she asked quietly, as if she spoke only for the sake of it.

Gokudera almost flinched. There it was again, he recognised. That curious tone of voice that made it seem as though she was analysing and questioning a bizarre animal. It was the exact same tone that her father had frequently used when addressing him. Like father like daughter it seemed. At least in this case. She didn't seem particularly fond of her father from what he had gathered from their earlier conversations but then again that could have simply been an act to get him on side. Anything was a possibility and these days Gokudera was nothing but cautious.

Seeing the curious look on Ageha Urumeki's face, Gokudera felt compelled to answer her question, although it had probably been rhetorical to begin with. He kept his tone neutral as he spoke, though his words were threatening.

"I'm wondering whether I should give you the benefit of the doubt…or whether I should slit your throat now and spare myself some potential trouble in the future," he said, his serious gaze never once leaving her face.

Ageha continued to stare at him even after he had so obviously threatened her. The smile lingered on her lips as though she hadn't even registered Gokudera's words. But the words that emerged from her mouth next proved that she had been paying close attention.

"I wouldn't expect any less from you Gokudera-san. To be honest I would be disappointed in you if you did trust me and didn't question my allegiances. But I'm not doing any of this for you. I'm doing it for Matteo, so at least one good thing from his childhood could persevere, so something good can come from him being imprisoned here," she said, her tone becoming increasingly gentle as she spoke of Matteo.

This threw Gokudera. Her tone when she spoke of Matteo was warm, he could tell that at least in that regard she was telling the truth. She cared for him. It was obvious. But that didn't mean in the slightest that he could trust her. He wasn't even sure why he had even trusted Matteo before. It had been unlike him to slip in such a manner, to trust blindingly. It seemed as though in the five years that he had known Tsunayoshi Sawada, something had rubbed off on him. A willingness to proceed on faith alone.

Gokudera almost smiled at that thought, that he of all people had become so different due to one man's influence.

And then he realised something else. Recognised something in himself that he had discovered in Matteo. Gokudera idolised his leader, his respect for him had no bounds…and that was how Matteo looked at _him. _Matteo looked to him as a subordinate would look to their leader. He was Matteo's 'Tenth'.

After that everything became clear to him. He knew what he had to do.

He would save Matteo, just as Tsunayoshi Sawada had saved _him_ years ago.

His mind now resolved, Gokudera turned his attention back to the wheelchair bound young mistress who was casually picking under her nails without a care in the world. But when she turned to look at him her brows lifted and her eyes narrowed as if she had discovered something. She looked at his face and she seemed to see everything, everything that Gokudera had decided in the passing few minutes.

Her voice struck out against the silence once more, her tone surprisingly affectionate.

"You seem to have come to some kind of resolution. Your face no longer shows as much conflict. I…thank you," she said, her voice lowering in volume as her sentence neared its end.

Gokudera was surprised to hear such a grateful tone escape from the young woman's lips. For the brief time that he had known her Gokudera had already made assumptions, coloured her personality before she had even finished giving him the full picture.

"Like you said before, I'm not doing this for you. I'm prepared to trust Matteo, but there is no way in hell I'm turning my back to you just yet," Gokudera explained, the threat clear in his voice.

Ageha nodded slowly, but said nothing for a while.

"I see," she finally said, arms crossed firmly over her chest. "May I ask what changed, for you to be so….forthcoming?"

Gokudera snorted at her choice of word and lifted his lip in a cocky smirk.

"At this point, what the fuck do I have to lose."

**~oOo~**

Matteo was careful to maintain a guarded attitude as he proceeded down the hallway, but all he really wanted to do was smile madly as he passed unsuspecting members of the Urumeki family. He acknowledged some, keeping his emotions in check, even as he longed to laugh in their face.

He had pulled the wool over their eyes. He had beaten Urumeki, had taken the key from right under some of Urumeki's best men. And now, now he was going to get Gokudera out.

He walked briskly and determinedly as he saw the door he had been eagerly seeking out in the distance.

It was time. Time for them to make their stand, time for them to receive the revenge that he had been waiting a long fifteen years for. Matteo could finally see the light at the end of his tunnel and he was determined that nothing and no-one stood in the way of his reunion with Cesa or his rescue of Gokudera.

As he finally reached the door he felt around in his jacket pocket to make sure that the key was still safe and then extended a hand to make his presence known to the room's occupants.

**~oOo~**

Gokudera shifted uncomfortably on the floor, his broken legs sending waves of pain his way. He steeled himself as he felt the nausea that accompanied the pain and forced what he knew was the entire contents of his stomach pack down. For some reason he did not like the idea of spilling his lunch in front of Ageha. The judgemental looks she had been sending his way were already enough.

He forced himself to stay deathly still, in case another wave of pain would come crashing down on him, but he had to admit that he was lying in a very uncomfortable position even without the two broken legs that held him back and the various wounds that littered his body. It was obvious that his apparent escape wouldn't be made using his own legs. That thought sent a plethora of anger into his thoughts. He hated being defenceless, hated being made to look weak…and worst of all, if he returned to the Vongola family in the state he was in, he would never hear the end of it. He could already imagine the miserable look on Tsuna's face, could see the way his face would pinch with displeasure as he saw the extent of his right hand man's injuries. But even worse than Tsuna's reaction, would be the look on Yamamoto's face when he saw it for himself. Frightening couldn't even begin to describe the look of pure rage that he knew he'd see were he to look at Yamamoto's face. Gokudera had to admit that the look that he'd sometimes see on Yamamoto's now mature face was…petrifying. When he was angry, truly angry, his aura was something to behold. It was what Gokudera imagined staring into the eyes of a shark would feel like. He could practically see the look in Yamamoto's eyes just by thinking of it. First they would show his anger, and then that would eventually fade away to be replaced by nothingness. An expression that Gokudera could only describe as killing intent. That was how far Yamamoto would go, and Gokudera knew it. Because Gokudera knew that he was what Yamamoto considered to be his closest friend. And…

A short and to the point tap on the door caused Gokudera to jump from his thoughts, prompting Ageha to stare at him amusedly. Gokudera mentally stopped himself when he felt colour crop up onto his cheeks and proceeded to gesture his head towards the door questioningly.

"Get your ass in here Matt," she hissed urgently at the door.

She had hissed quietly but Gokudera was sure Matteo had heard, and his theory was proven correct when he saw the handle turn slowly. The door opened and Gokudera could see Matteo's smiling figure as he proceeded forward into the room. The other young man grinned sheepishly at Ageha, who only sighed in response and then his gaze fell upon Gokudera lying on the hard floor.

Matteo's jaw dropped.

He stared momentarily and then seconds later he rushed forward in alarm, dropping to his knees in front of the prone Gokudera. He looked haunted as he eyed Gokudera's broken legs, as he took record of each new blemish or wound that the storm guardian had procured since he had last seen him. Eyes downcast, he said exactly what Gokudera had expected to hear.

"I'm sorry…"

Matteo apologised for his pain, the pain that he hadn't even caused. Just like Tsuna would have.

"I'm not blaming you for anything, so quit looking like I'm an invalid. I still have some fucking fight left in me," Gokudera growled, sounding far harsher than he had intended.

But Matteo only nodded absently as he stared at Gokudera's damaged legs, couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by guilt.

_Could I have done something to prevent this? To spare Gokudera this pain, _he found himself thinking soberly.

"Matteo," Ageha's sharp voice echoed across the room," Where have you been?"

He didn't answer for a few seconds, but when Gokudera saw the expression on his face he almost found himself smiling. Matteo looked like a child at Christmas, his eyes alight with excitement, the smile on his face wide and free.

Before he answered Ageha's question, he placed his hand inside the pocket of his jacket and pulled out a bright red handkerchief of all things. At this, Gokudera's expression morphed into one of confusion.

Just what did the handkerchief contain that had made Matteo so excited.

Could it be?

Gokudera's suspicions were confirmed when Matteo unveiled his trophy proudly. He had gestured for Gokudera to outstretch his hand to receive the item and when Gokudera complied Matteo dropped the treasure into his waiting hand.

A small gold key now lay in the palm of his hand.

Gokudera recognised it instantaneously and suppressed a grin.

"The key to the ark. You got it back," he stated simply.

Matteo nodded enthusiastically and then using his hand he pressed Gokudera's own closed over the key.

"It never belonged here in the first place. And neither do we," Matteo replied emphatically.

Gokudera looked at the older man before him, and then turned his gaze towards Ageha.

"A simple e-mail wont work. No doubt they'll think of it as a trap. They aren't stupid," Gokudera rationalized to the group, who proceeded to nod their agreement.

"So?" Ageha asked, urging Gokudera to share the solution she already knew he had devised.

For the first time since he had awoken in the room Gokudera smiled.

"So, we make them absolutely sure its me contacting them."

**~oOo~**

The Vongola family members continued to huddle around Spanner, who was none too pleased with the lack of personal space. All eyes followed the screen as he made to decrypt the message he had received. But suddenly he stopped and turned an enquiring eye toward Tsuna.

"There may be a virus in this attached file. I mean I'm all for opening the suspicious e-mail but…if this is a virus it could bring our whole system down," Spanner warned, twirling one of his trademark lollipops between his fingers.

Tsuna seemed to think on this momentarily, his face contorted with worry. Yamamoto saw his concern and placed a firm hand on his friends shoulder.

"Tsuna…if its from Gokudera…." he started, his voice at half its usual level of confidence.

The tenth Vongola boss nodded to himself and then turned his eyes towards Spanner, his eyes showing that he had obviously come to a decision.

"Spanner. Open it," he ordered, his voice quiet.

The blonde haired genius said nothing but did exactly what he was told. He tacked the encryption easily and opened the file that had come attached with the email.

As the document opened on Spanner's laptop the whole group seemed to huddle even closer to the screen.

What greeted them was a series of hand drawn images on the screen, rather familiar images. They seemed to have been drawn on a tablet before being sent via the email.

"Is that," Tsuna started to ask.

"That's Gokudera's secret language thingy isn't it?"

Spanner zoomed in on what the others now knew to be Gokudera's message. It was the language that he had created as a child, the one only two people could actually read.

"It's co-ordinates. Gokudera's telling us where they're keeping him," Yamamoto said roughly as he read the inscription.

A majority of the group turned their heads in surprise when they realised that the rain guardian could actually read the random imagery before them.

Yamamoto had convinced Gokudera to teach him his code for exactly this reason, that if either of the two of them were ever in need in an insecure area they had this as a means of communication.

But he and Gokudera were the only ones who knew that Yamamoto could read the code and he for one was relieved that he had pestered Gokudera to teach him.

The group seemed to contemplate the message in a short silence before a loud voice interrupted the progressive silence.

"So what the hell are we standing around here for? Tako-head is waiting for us!" Ryohei Sasagawa enthused.

Yamamoto nodded his head at his companion and smirked darkly.

"Ryohei is right. Besides, what do we have to lose?"

TO BE CONTINUED

**Oi! Hey you! Yeah, you! Where do you think you're going without leaving a review? Seriously, at this stressful juncture of my life I need them! Show me your love for this story! **

**~H59~**


	22. Chapter 22 Commencement

**Holy crap guys its been a long time. I can only apologize. I had such terrible writing block when it came to writing this chapter for some reason, and I think that the manga actually ending didn't help. I was so disappointed by the ending. How about you?**

**I was in a car accident a few weeks ago and broke my arm quite badly. Well, said arm just happened to get infected a while ago as well, so I've been recovering in hospital up until the 14****th****. Fun times. But that did actually leave me with some extra time to mull over this chapter, which I really wanted to get up before Christmas (trying to update everything before then). This is what I came up with. It was a bitch to write, but I hope it isn't a bitch to read T^T**

**Thanks to anyone who reviewed, favourited, followed or read this series during my absence. You make typing with a broken arm worthwhile!**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters from the KHR series, but I do own Urumeki, Matteo, Hideaki, Ageha, random OC's that turn up and Xanxus' scotch glass.**

**Commencement**

Yamamoto Takeshi dragged a slim, callused hand through his black hair and studied the muddled group before him. They had all gathered in the clearing, the burning Vongola base a mere pinprick in the distance, and had formed a semi-circle with Tsuna seated in the very middle. The Varia stood aloof in the background, most leaning against a tree or standing just far enough away from the Vongola guardians. Everyone who was still alive on the site was there. But Yamamoto couldn't help but notice Gokudera's absence once again; the silver haired youth that was always such a crucial addition when it came to the Vongola strategy meetings. It was his specialty above all else, and they had all come to expect him to be there; a reckless but effective plan of action at the ready.

But, Yamamoto supposed, they would just have to make do without him this time, would have to come up with something on their own, even if it wouldn't be up to the standards of the storm guardian. After all, Gokudera couldn't exactly plan his own rescue. However, as that thought crossed his mind, Yamamoto automatically corrected himself. It was actually well within Gokudera's capabilities to actually find a way out for himself, but this time Yamamoto would aid his best friend whether he liked it or not, even if he did end up merely being Gokudera's backup. He'd do anything, just to make sure that he came back safely.

He was picking at the loose threads emerging from the sleeves of his dilapidated suit when Tsuna cleared his throat from the centre of their group, trying to get his family's attention. The group, all rather excitable and loud as they chattered away with each other, immediately hushed themselves to hear instructions from their young leader. The silence in between Tsuna's clearing of his throat and his actual words was deafening to Yamamoto.

"Alright. If we're really going to bust into Urumeki's base we need to decide who's going and who stays behind. Obviously, I'll have to stay here and make sure that things get done, so we can get some order back. Mukuro, Chrome, I want you to stay on site…and record the dead. Xanxus, I want the Varia to stop any of Urumeki's men from getting away, we cant let them escape with any information. But I want _you_ to go along and secure Hayato," Tsuna ordered emphatically, completely disregarding Xaxnus' annoyed growl.

Then he turned to face Yamamoto, who was just outside the assembled half-circle of people, with a grave expression.

"Takeshi…" he started, before being cut off by the very man he was addressing.

"I'm going," Yamamoto stated brusquely, the tone of voice he used leaving absolutely no room for negotiation.

Tsuna gave him a grave look and then nodded his head in agreement.

"Yeah, of course. I know what getting Hayato back means to you Takeshi. I wouldn't stop you from doing this."

Yamamoto said nothing, merely nodding his agreement with a small smile on his face. He was glad that Tsuna had understood, glad that he had no need to argue his way to the conclusion he wanted.

A small silence settled over the group after Tsuna momentarily fell silent, with no one knowing quite what to say next and Yamamoto simply toyed with his torn sleeve eager to get going.

Naturally, the silence was broken by the loudest Vongola guardian as he shot up from where he had been seated on a tree stump. His action, as impulsive as it was, looked lethargic to Yamamoto's trained eye, but he said nothing.

"Yo li'l bro! Send me along too!" Ryohei Sasagawa chimed in enthusiastically, flexing his weary muscles as he spoke and trying but ultimately failing to look more energised than he actually was.

Tsuna felt Kyoko stiffen at his side and he reached out to take her hand in his, gripping it reassuringly when he felt her own hand squeeze back. She had seen her brother go into battle numerous times before, but she had never seen him so pale and tired whilst doing so. She couldn't help but worry. He was her precious brother after all, and she wanted, above all, for him to stay safe. But she didn't say anything, didn't object to his proposal, because she knew it was now a matter of pride for him and that Ryohei wanted to protect Gokudera as much as Tsuna and Yamamoto did. Gokudera was, in spite of everything, one of Ryohei's closest friends, even though he would never admit it to the silver haired storm guardian.

She had no need to say anything though, as Tsuna had already noted her worried expression and decided to intervene in her place.

"I don't think that's a good idea Ryohei. You need to rest. I know how much all that healing must have taken out of you," he argued worriedly, frown settled on his youthful face, his free hand raking through his lively hair.

Ryohei felt the group redirect their stares towards him and stiffened. They looked at him pityingly, which he hated. He didn't want them looking at him like he was an invalid, that was just annoying.

But Tsuna had a point. Ryohei was far from steady on his feet, swaying slightly and alternating his dominating foot. His face was pale from overexertion which made his drawn face look even more exhausted.

Ryohei, well aware of the critical gazes that trailed on him, forcefully steadied himself and stood to his full height. When he spoke, he made a point of sounding better than he looked.

"Look, bro. We don't know what shape Gokudera is in, right? When it comes down to it, after being taken by that guy there's a pretty good chance that he's extremely banged up. He may need me," he said sensibly, gesticulating his arms as he spoke.

Tsuna looked at the older man with a dated look. The words that Ryohei had spoken were proof that the sun guardian had grown up. He was well aware that Ryohei had argued the case effectively; that he was right, and found himself wondering whether Ryohei's upgraded planning skills had something to do with a certain storm guardian's influence.

Tsuna regarded Ryohei's defence with a critical eye, and became annoyed with himself when his mind kept pressing that it _was_ a pertinent reason as to why he should let the Sun Guardian go along with the others. Gokudera _had_ been captured by a hostile enemy and it was within reason to suppose that he had been injured. If that was the case, Ryohei would indeed be needed. But Tsuna was loathe to send an already drained man into battle, even though he knew Ryohei could hold his own in a fight. He had already lost Gokudera due to Urumeki and his men. He didn't want to lose Ryohei to them as well.

However, in the end Tsuna gave in with a short sigh.

"Are you sure nii-san?" Tsuna asked him, giving him one last opportunity to back out, unconsciously slipping in the familial address.

But as expected Ryohei only grinned widely and nodded, giving his leader a thumbs up, his smile even broader than normal after hearing Tsuna's way of addressing him.

"Hope ya don't mind me tagging along Takeshi!" Ryohei laughed, striding to Yamamoto's side and throwing an arm around his shoulder.

Yamamoto smiled slightly and chose to ignore the fact that Ryohei was leaning on him far more than he should be.

"Glad to have you on board senpai," Yamamoto replied, shifting his shoulder to make it easier on Ryohei; casually hiding the fact that the sun guardian was depending on him to stay upright. He saw Ryohei give him a smile of thanks from the corner of his eye and nodded.

Tsuna watched the interaction with a critical gaze, his eyes picking up what others could not. He could see that Ryohei was clearly dependant on the other young man to keep him upright, but to point that out would be an insult to the sun guardian's pride.

"I want to go too," a small voice piped in out of nowhere, and the whole family practically turned to face the speaker as one.

Lambo sat to Tsuna's left, his small hands tightened into fists and his expression a mix of grim determination and nervousness. Though he had spoken silently it was obvious that he was willing to defend his request.

"No," Tsuna dismissed almost immediately, causing the boy to almost shrivel up in defeat.

"But Tsuna-nii," Lambo started to argue, before a single look from Tsuna silenced him.

Lambo whimpered once and then was silent.

"I know you're strong Lambo. But this is too much to pin on you. The others will get Hayato back, you can count on that. In the meantime, I'll find something for you to do over here," Tsuna explained to him, his tone gentle now that he saw how his strict manner had affected the boy.

He saw Lambo nod slightly and ignored the sick feeling in his stomach that he got when he saw the ten year old's lip tremble. His reaction to Lambo's request, however harsh, was necessary, Tsuna told himself. He didn't say anything when Lambo stood up and made a beeline for the trees, telling the group that he was just going to relieve himself, but sighed when the young boy was out of earshot.

"Don't beat yourself up about it Tsuna," Kyoko told him gently, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze," Lambo-kun is still a kid. He just doesn't understand that we're all trying to keep him safe."

Tsuna sent her a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes, before turning to address the group once more.

"Alright. We can do this. We can save Hayato and we can rebuild. No one else is going to die today. I'll…no, we'll make sure of that. Let's show these bastards how the Vongola retaliate!"

**~oOo~**

Xanxus had strolled away before them, leaving a rather bemused Yamamoto and Ryohei to stare at his retreating back, the latter practically draped over the other's shoulders. As they broke off from the rest of the remaining Vongola, he had no need to keep up the façade of being healthy, as much as he wanted to. He didn't even have the energy to _act_ energetic anymore.

"Ryohei. Take a breather once we board. I'll pilot us there," Yamamoto offered, well aware that the other needed all the rest that he could get.

Ryohei accepted with a brisk nod, already feeling his eyelids begin to droop. He knew that it was the only offer he would get. There was **no way **in hell that Xanxus would offer to do the same. That was a laughable thought.

And true to all expectations of him, when the other young men boarded the jet, he was already lounging in his seat sipping at a glass of scotch. It was a revelation to them that he had actually poured _himself_ a drink and hadn't waited for them so he could order them to do it instead.

Yamamoto almost rolled his eyes at the sight. Trust Xanxus to look the very image of relaxation as they were about to make their way to the enemy base. It was almost comical. Almost as comical as Hibari's reaction when Tsuna had asked him to go with the unlikely group.

"_I refuse. It's Gokudera's Hayato move,"_ he had said with that dull tone of his.

Yamamoto couldn't begin to fathom why their game was more important than actually saving a man's life, but then again, after years of knowing Hibari he was still no closer to actually _understanding_ him. He was still as much of a mystery as he was when they first met him.

With a shake of his head Yamamoto unloaded the now snoozing Ryohei into a seat at the front of the cabin and buckled him in, making sure not to wake the other man. Yamamoto was confident of his piloting skills but he still made sure that Ryohei was close enough to call on should something happen to go awry. Amongst the Vongola guardians he had the most flight experience after all. Surprisingly it was Gokudera who had suggested for him to try for a pilot license all those years ago. Maybe he had seen something in that excitable sun guardian that the others were all ready to dismiss. A potential for something.

"Oi trash. We have a stowaway," Xanxus' deep voice suddenly stated.

Yamamoto turned to face the older man who simply twirled the glass of scotch in his hand with a practiced finesse, sending the substance sloshing against the sides but never over.

Yamamoto arched a brow before he heard what he thought was a squeak emerge from under one of the seats in the back of the cabin. He sighed as he recognised the voice behind the noise, before walking up the aisle to address it personally. Sure enough, when he reached the seats and dropped himself on his knees to look under them he was greeted with fearful orbs.

"Lambo. Get out from under there and back to Tsuna," he ordered the boy as he heaved himself off his knees and stood to his full height, arms crossed over his chest and a frown on his handsome face.

He watched as Lambo crawled from his hiding place and scurried to his feet sheepishly.

When Lambo spoke, his voice was surprisingly loud, reminiscent of the same volume he had used as that annoying five year old he used to be.

"Please, Takeshi-san. Please let me go rescue Gokudera-nii too. I wont get in your way, honest," the boy pleaded, with a steel in his voice that Yamamoto had never heard before.

Yamamoto sighed, his resolve starting to flounder when he heard the passionate plea. He couldn't remember the last time that Lambo had lost that reservation and had spoken with such confidence. It was almost a shame that he had to refuse his request.

From the front of the cabin, Yamamoto heard Ryohei's sleepy voice sound out, accompanied by a strange noise that he could only assume was a Ryohei style yawn.

"Come on Takeshi. He's just as much a guardian as the rest of us. Give the kid a chance," the older guardian enthused, followed by an arrogant grunt from Xanxus that he could only interpret as a 'do whatever you want but get the fuck moving' grunt. Xanxus' range of grunts was practically a language in itself.

Feeling small hands entwine themselves in his shirt, Yamamoto looked down into the face of the youngest family member and had to stop himself from groaning out loud. He did, however, roll his eyes, before ruffling a hand through black curls.

"Gokudera's going to kill me for this," Yamamoto mumbled under his breath

, before swearing to himself that he wouldn't let the kid get as much as a scratch on him until they found his 'older brother'. Or he really would be a dead man.

TO BE CONTINUED

**MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA, now all of my favourite characters (plus Lambo and minus Gokudera) are grouped together! I just had to send Xanxus and Ryohei. I HAD TO. Because they never did get enough screen time :'(**

**I still can't believe that the manga has ended. After following it for years, it just seemed a bit sudden to end it. Who agrees that Amano-sensei should either do a sequel where the guardians are all grown up, or a prequel with Giotto and his guardians? That would be ace!**

**So anyhoo, let me know what you think. Send me a review or a message.**

**Oh, and I'm still looking for OC's to serve as Urumeki's henchmen so feel free to send some in!**

**Later!**

**SFS x**


	23. Chapter 23 Vacation

**Sorry! This has been a long time coming huh? I have to admit though, I'm not really invested in this story as much now, although I'm trying my hardest to rectify that. I'm just trying to get back into the swing of things with this chapter so let me know whether its any good or just utter horse poop.**

**This chapter is dedicated to Nicholai Vincent for getting me off my lazy butt and typing this. Hope you approve :)**

**On another note, even months down the line I'm still ticked off with the manga's ending…seriously what the heck was that!?**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS FROM KHR BUT I ALL OTHER CHARACTERS ARE MY OWN CREATIONS!**

Chapter 23- Vacation

As Gokudera put down the tablet with a resigned sigh, the other occupants of the room could only stare at what lay before them. To their confused eyes Gokudera seemed to have just doodled in the e-mail they had just sent to the Vongola family. They didn't even seem to be particularly good doodles either; rather crude for someone as seemingly professional and meticulous as the storm guardian. Matteo decided not to say anything, lest Gokudera took offence. Having only just reconciled a short while ago after years of separation, the last thing he wanted was for that space between them to widen once more. However, before he even had to say anything, Ageha spoke up instead and she had no intention of softening her words.

"Are we supposed to believe that those deformed doodles of yours are meant to mean something? All it really tells us is that you shouldn't pursue a career in the fine arts. To be honest, that was a little anticlimactic. I don't know what I was expecting, but that definitely wasn't it," she stated dryly, obviously unimpressed with what she had seen on the tablet.

Matteo turned his head away to disguise the small smile on his face after he heard her rather honest admission; he knew by now that she was not someone to mince words even among allies. It was one of the things he liked about her; that he could always depend on her to be honest. Even if she was usually too blunt for her own good. She had far more enemies than friends.

Gokudera couldn't help the flush that settled over his cheeks at the comment. He wasn't expecting to be confronted about his rather lacking artistic abilities when he had drawn out his message. It was the second time it had happened, the first being a rather innocent question from a younger Yamamoto: _"woah, which kid drew you those Gokudera?"_ But innocent though it may have been at the time, Gokudera had decided to go with a swift kick to his leg as punishment and the rain guardian had walked with a limp for the rest of that day. Gokudera could translate whole latin passages in mere minutes, he could speak six languages more or less fluently, solve mathematical problems swiftly using only his mind, memorise pages of script in as long as it took to read them…but for all his genius in other areas he couldn't draw worth a damn. It was one of those things that never failed to annoy him.

Through Gokudera's response a short while later, Matteo could instantly tell that the comment had unarmed him; embarrassed him even. When he was a child he had sought to hide his embarrassment with anger. Now, it seemed, was not so different. Matteo was almost glad to see that some things hadn't changed even after the young boy he knew had grown into a man.

"Look, we don't have the time for me to make them into fucking masterpieces! What matters is that they get the message I'm sending. We just better hope that the Tenth…or that idiot, is there to get it," Gokudera stressed, the slightest hint of worry flicking over his eyes for a second.

"Why those two?" Ageha asked curiously before Matteo even had time to open his mouth to ask the same.

Gokudera turned his hard eyes on the young woman, seemingly having taken offence to her comment about his lack of artistic talent.

"Because, they're the only ones that I taught my code to. Thought it would come in handy for times like these. You know, when a demented megalomaniac kidnaps me to try to obtain unlimited power, one of those situations. No offence," he muttered sarcastically toward the wheelchair-bound woman.

He frowned when he saw her smile in response, not swayed by his choice of words in the least. If anything, she seemed amused by them.

"None taken. He _is_ a demented megalomaniac. I couldn't have said it better myself, though I think I'd use a few more discourteous adjectives in my description of the old maniac."

"Yeah, well what can I say, Im a fucking gentleman."

"Clearly," Ageha responded with a derisive snort.

Matteo watched the back-and-forth with barely hidden amusement. He had noticed before that both of his companions had much more in common than they would like to admit. They both had sharp minds as well as sharp tongues and while Ageha hid it more they both worked hard to protect the people they cared about. Matteo was well aware that the only reason he was still breathing was because she had protected him from both her father and brother. At this point in the game he wasn't strong enough for their purposes anymore. He was disposable, and the only reason he hadn't been disposed of was due to her. He owed both of them in different ways and he would repay them, even if it cost him his life.

'_No, that's not right_,' he corrected himself as he mused.

He _would_ get out alive. For Cesa's sake, as well as his own. It was high time that he began to live for himself; not under the rule of others. He would leave with Ageha, find his brother- no matter how long it took- and then he would make a life for them: his family.

It was startling to think that he had never thought this far, had always stayed pessimistic of his chances of escaping. It had never struck him as a possibility before, the concept staying just out of his reach. But then everything had changed when _he_ came back into his life. With Gokudera came hope.

Now Matteo _believed _it was possible.

With a start, he realised that both Gokudera and Ageha were staring at him with raised eyebrows and only then did he come to the realisation that they had probably been talking to him while he was far away in thought. He felt his cheeks heat up with a blush and raked a hand through his hair with a nervous chuckle.

"Uh, sorry. What did you say?" he asked them sheepishly.

He didn't need to see Ageha's face to know that she probably rolled her eyes at him. He wasn't surprised to see Gokudera do the same either.

"I said," Ageha started with a reprimand in her tone, "that we should think about a way to get Gokudera-san out of here. Preferably in one piece."

She crossed her arms over her chest and pouted her lips. When she had first thought of this rather crude escape plan of hers she hadn't counted on her unstable father breaking the legs of their ticket out. With Gokudera out of action for an unknown period it gave her even more things to consider in her plan. She had read stories of people travelling on a broken leg before, but realistically speaking it was probably best to assume that Gokudera wasn't going to walk out of there with _both_ legs down for the count.

She saw the gears turning in Matteo's head as she voiced the problem but since he never spoke up she assumed that he had drawn a blank much as she had. Next, she turned her gaze on the storm guardian on the floor and watched as he shuffled about, obviously testing how far he was able to cope with the pain. Ageha was impressed when she saw him do so. It was apparent that this Gokudera Hayato wasn't one to give up easily, perhaps to the point where he was almost stupidly stubborn. Matteo was the same.

_'What is it with these men and not being able to give up?_' she mused to herself as she continued to watch the silver haired young man, fascinated with his drive.

Eventually Gokudera stilled, a frown fixed on his face. He obviously wasn't satisfied with what he had discovered. He gave a weary sigh, just before he turned to face Ageha.

"I'll need your help," he admitted resignedly.

Her eyes widened with his declaration and she found herself nodding almost unconsciously.

"Of course. What do you have in mind," she asked curiously.

She had no idea what he had thought up, but going by the grimace on Gokudera Hayato's face, it wasn't pretty.

"I'll need painkillers if you can find any. The strongest ones around that will keep me clear headed enough to think," Gokudera explained.

He gauged the wheelchair bound young woman for a reaction and made sure to ignore the faint swell of hope that ignited in his chest when she smirked at him cockily.

"And here I thought you'd have a challenge for me. Consider it done."

**~0~**

The minutes following Ageha's departure stretched on until it was almost painful, with both men wishing fervently for her speedy return. Now that Gokudera apparently had some kind of plan in the works, it was even more essential for them to work quickly, lest the Vongola arrive before they had even made a dent in their escape. They hopefully wouldn't need aid to get out unhindered if all went well. All they needed was a ride out of there and a few extra hands just in case things turned sour. Gokudera prayed they wouldn't be needed for the latter, but the way his luck seemed to be going so far it was best to have them there as a Plan B of sorts. It was safe to say that he hadn't been expecting that bastard Urumeki to have his legs broken either. That had put a dampener on things.

While Matteo paced around the room, playing with his hands nervously, Gokudera stared at the tablet on the floor in front of him. A bit distracted with the SOS message earlier, he had completely let something else slip from his mind, though now it was back with a vengeance. He glanced over his shoulder to see what Matteo was doing, and seeing he was still pacing drew out another message to send to the Tenth in the meantime. He couldn't believe that he had forgotten to include it earlier but was glad that the opportunity arose for him to rectify that mistake. Hopefully they would be able to do something about it while he was out of commission.

He pressed send for the second time in under an hour and let the message do the rest. He had faith that the Tenth would sort it out.

A coded knock on the door snapped him out of reverie and he sent a furtive glance Matteo's way, letting him know without even having the need to use words that it was safe to open. They had agreed on a knock just before Ageha had left and a repeat of the same series of raps was enough to let them know it was her.

Matteo practically ran over to the door to unlock it for her, looking both ways down the hallway to check she hadn't been followed and then finally closing it after her. He locked the door and stepped back, giving his female friend the once over just in case. She didn't seem to have gotten into any trouble in the few minutes she had been away, but with her Matteo found that it was always best to ask just in case. Trouble had a way of following her around.

"Run into any problems?" he asked her cautiously.

The look that he received in response was enough to relieve him. In fact she looked offended that he had even asked.

"No. I'm not exactly running into anything. Haven't for years," she joked, gesturing towards the wheelchair with her head while she played catch with a sealed bottle of medication.

Matteo gave her a look of horror and stuttered an apology which Ageha waved away with her free hand. She winked at Gokudera mischievously when she saw him frown at her actions.

Gokudera watched the interaction with irritation. He had no patience with dealing with the stupid couple - because it was obvious they both felt the same- when he had other things to think about.

He fidgeted on the floor, feeling his arms start to go numb as he used them to support his weight. Sooner or later he knew he would have to move, but for now he was perfectly content with bearing the numbness if it meant less pain emanating from his broken legs. Those limbs had practically made him forget about his other injuries, although as soon as he thought so they began to throb and ache with new fervour.

Almost as if sensing his pain, Matteo looked down at him with worry.

"What do you plan on doing now?" he asked him tersely, his expression filled with genuine curiosity,

Gokudera clicked his tongue and for a single moment Matteo thought the gesture was due to him.

"Even if you don't think it'll work, you should still share your great plan with us," Ageha chimed in from the side, the bottle now stationary in her hands.

Matteo resisted the urge to turn to her in surprise. Had she realised that Gokudera wasn't confident in his plan, even when he hadn't? She had only known Gokudera for less than a day and she already had a better read on him than he did. Her perception astounded him still.

Gokudera turned bright eyes on her and she stared back. Eventually with a shrug of his shoulders and then a rather pessimistic sounding sigh, he spoke.

"It's a weak idea, but at this point its all we have. Basically I swallow enough of those to dull the pain while staying as lucid as I can-" he started with a certain hesitance.

Matteo heard him falter and encouraged him to continue with a '_and then?'_

_"_I summon Uri to carry me out and hope that my energy lasts that far."

A film of silence fell over the room as the others regarded his idea. Gokudera didn't even need to be the genius he was to know that they weren't impressed, but he was far from caring. He didn't see them coming up with anything and at this point he was willing to try anything to get out of his prison. He could tell what was coming. He knew that the first voice he would hear would be hers, that grating, arrogant sing-song voice of hers. Even when she didn't mean to she sounded condescending.

"That's it? That's the big plan? You get your kitty to carry you?"

He saw Matteo frown at her from the corner of his eyes, which she either didn't see or chose to ignore. He was glad that the other young man was on his side, but that didn't mean he wanted to be babied. He already had one idiot that thought he needed protecting, he didn't need another one. He wasn't hurt by Ageha's criticism because he had expected it. Had their roles been reversed and she was the one who had proposed the 'plan' he probably would have done the very same. His plan was far from up to standard, and his eye twitched at the sheer simplicity of it all.

"I didn't say it was perfect. I just don't hear any other suggestions," he growled, letting the irritation get to him just a little.

"Well if that's the best we have-"

Suddenly, their budding argument was brought to an abrupt end when a wail erupted throughout the room, and from the sounds of it down the hallway as well.

Gokudera winced at the volume of it. It was even louder than the Vongola alarm.

"I'm getting kind of sick of alarms! What the fuck does that mean?" he shouted over the noise, struggling for his voice to be heard.

He saw Ageha and Matteo share a look and then followed the other young man with his eyes when he made for the door.

"Wait here! I'll go check it out!" Matteo bellowed, before turning on his heel, unlocking the door and hurrying through.

**~0~**

Gokudera could be a very patient individual when he needed to be, but at that particular moment he was struggling. In his position in the Vongola patience was a necessity, but here it was practically non-existent as he waited for Matteo to stride back through the door. His eyes burned holes into the metal, willing it to open.

When it eventually did he resisted the urge to sigh with relief. He was getting sick and tired of watching people leave through that door and having to wait for them to return while he 'lounged' about on the floor. He was getting sick of that small voice in the back of his mind that tried to convince him that they wouldn't be coming back for him. He tried to pretend that thought didn't affect him, but he wasn't having much success.

When Matteo bolted into the room and locked the door behind him in practically the same motion he looked far more enthusiastic than Gokudera had ever seen him, even in the rare memory flashes back to his childhood when Matteo had been present. The grin on his face was self-explanatory. It seemed that something, finally, was going their way.

"It's the Vongola! Their jet was sighted around seventy miles away and heading this way!"

Gokudera resisted the urge to whoop for joy and instead resigned himself to an excited grin. He gestured for Matteo to bend down beside him so he wouldn't have to shout up to him over the blaring of the alarm and the other did so, still smiling from ear to ear.

"Seventy? That was fucking quick!" he exclaimed,"Just where are we?"

Ageha took the opportunity to jump in, apparently having heard the whole exchange even over the noise.

"Your base is two hundred miles or so to the east of here," she explained, smirking slightly when she Gokudera frown at that bit of information. He was probably expecting a few thousand miles between them, not a couple of hundred.

"That fucking close?!" Well, that news is enough to get a man motivated! Let's get moving!"

**~0~**

A silhouetted figure leaned against his flash car and gave his cigarette one final drag. He blew out the smoke with a lazy manner and watched as it floated upward, bent here and there with the push of a passing breeze. He flicked the cigarette from between his fingers and stepped on it with the heel of his designer shoe. The sheen on his black shoes and the clean cut of his fine suit gave the man that smart look that he so prided himself on. His presentation mattered to him; he liked to look his best as he took down his enemies.

A whirring sound in the breast pocket of his suit alerted him to an incoming phone-call and he reached for it with an exaggerated finesse. He glanced down at the caller id, pushing back a loose strand of pitch black hair before he accepted. He acted as though he had all the time in the world, but knew that if _that_ man was calling him, completely disregarding the fact that he was on vacation, then something was wrong. He knew better than to interrupt unless it was deadly serious.

As he accepted the call he stayed silent, letting the caller do all the talking while he listened intently. He could hear the urgency in the other's voice and made note of everything that he said, keeping it at the forefront of his mind for later. He had plenty of time to think things through as he drove over. Plenty of time to plan his revenge for having his vacation cut-short.

A minute later he ended the call, not even sparing a 'goodbye' for the person on the other end of the call. It wasn't needed and probably wasn't expected either.

The tall man gave an annoyed sigh as he plopped his cell back into his pocket and opened his car door.

"Can't that no-good idiot last three days without me?"

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**To be continued sometime in the near (or far) future. I wonder who that mysterious character is at the end there? Can anyone hazard a guess? Probably not much of a mystery…it's pretty freaking obvious in my book. **

**I want to thank those of you who have still read, reviewed, faved or followed this story during my untimely hiatus. Its nice to know that people are still reading this nearly THREE years down the line. WOW! You guys rock :)**

**See you later,**

**SFS ~x**


	24. Chapter 24 Resolve

_**Its finally done. I almost want to cry in relief that I actually managed to finish this chapter. it was so tedious to write.**_

_**You guys once again have Nicholai Vincent to thank for this actually being written, thank him/ her for their relentless intent on getting me off my lazy ass to finish it. Are you happy now?! :P**_

_**Thanks to everyone that has reviewed, favourited, followed or just read the series. Your support is a huge help, although I could always do with a few more reviews to keep my interest in this series. It'll only take a minute or so for you to tell me what you like or don't like in the series, or even things you want to see. Please do so :D**_

_**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS OF KHR BUT I DO OWN ALL ORIGINAL CHARACTERS**_

* * *

_**CHAPTER 24- Resolve**_

_An excerpt from a journal: page 74_

_Time and again I have often considered what I would have accomplished without them, without HIM by my side. I cannot say that the list would be particularly long. Most of the good that I have performed in this short life of mine would not have come to pass had he not been here to aid me. Even now, he works tirelessly for this family and I would be lost without him. He has been my closest friend since childhood and my most steadfast companion even in the darkest of times. I owe much to him, though he often denies it when I admit this to his face. As a child he was modest as well, that has never changed. His intellect he claims as nothing special. Of course we all know differently. How would we have endured without his quick thinking and keen insight? I dread to think. Just yesterday evening he unveiled to me his most brilliant mechanism yet, a genius thing. He calls it the __**Arc**__…_

** :~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~:**

Tsunayoshi Sawada leafed through the three pieces of paper in his hands, eyes focused with intensity. His gaze was a mix of grief and fury, his lips set in the thinnest of lines on his face as one by one he read through the list of names in his hands. The victims that day…those they had been able to record thus far that was. As the hours passed more names kept being added to the list, more pieces of paper added to the collection. As it stood now, the list of names on the third sheet weren't far from the bottom and he had a feeling that sheet number four wouldn't be long in following the other three.

He sighed with a weariness that ill befit his young age and rubbed thin fingers across his tired eyes. Reading that kind of list was enough to give anyone a headache and the pain in his chest wasn't completely unexpected either. Because they _weren't_ just names to him. They had been _his_ people.

His friends.

His family.

And now all that was _left_ of them was a name on a piece of paper, and if they were lucky, what remained of their body. The inferno had torn through the Vongola base, intense and unstoppable and those who came across its path and lived through the ordeal were few and far between. The number of dead and injured outnumbered the unharmed by 4:1. Even now, the groans of the survivors carried with the wind, turning Tsuna's stomach at the sheer volume and intensity of the pain in their voices. He had to resist clasping his hands over his ears just to block them out, but he had a feeling that if he did he would still hear the sound echo in his mind.

The young Vongola leader had known for years now that the life they chose to lead was dangerous; that there would be casualties along the way, but he had never expected so many all at once. His mind span in circles, mapping out all the '_what if's_' and the '_could I have's_', scenarios where he had done something. _Anything_. But is was too late for that and '_could have's_' and '_should have's_' wouldn't help anyone now.

Tsuna's brow furrowed as he leafed through the third page once more, his eyes stinging with the threat of tears. Before they fell he quickly rubbed a finger over them, getting rid of the evidence. His people needed him to be strong now, stronger than ever, now that their world was falling apart bit by bit. There was no time or need for tears, they would not help their situation, no matter how much he wanted to give in and let them fall.

Still leafing through the pages, occasionally pausing on some names in particular as a memory struck him, he heard her before he saw her: that gentle voice that calmed the storm raging in both his mind and heart. She had left his side for a while at his behest - reading that list was something he felt he needed to do alone, but not before kissing him gently on the lips and brushing a soothing hand over his cheek. She hadn't argued with him, instead she saw that this was something he needed, but that didn't mean that she had _wanted_ to leave him to bear the grief alone. Her hand ached to take his, to rub soft caresses against his callused skin and to whisper tenderly in his ear that she was there, as always. But she did as he asked, just this once. And when Tsuna needed her by his side, she would go to him. Just as she had done.

Kyoko Sasagawa walked over to his side, at first saying nothing, merely brushing her skirt against her legs and taking a seat on the fallen tree trunk beside him. When Tsuna sighed resignedly, voice weary and pained, and slumped his body against her side she leaned her head against his, her hair brushing against his cheek. One hand she used to finally grasp his own, holding it tight; the other she brushed into his brown hair.

When the tears finally fell from his eyes and soaked into her hair she finally spoke.

"Let it all out, Tsuna," she encouraged gently, knowing that this was the only occasion he was likely to receive for letting go of his mounting grief.

If he left it all to build up inside it would likely consume him and she would not allow that to happen to the man she loved.

His sobs were quiet lest someone hear him and even when Tsuna buried his face in his fiancé's hair, the hint of her apple shampoo failed to calm him as it usually managed to do so. Instead he was racked with anguish, salty tears stinging his eyes and trailing down his cheeks. He threw his arms around her thin frame and let her support him as he leaned against her. She hushed his sobs as her hands moved rhythmically against his back.

"Kyoko, how could I have failed so many?" he cried in anguish, gripping her hand tightly even as his own trembled with emotion.

"Don't do that to yourself Tsuna. This wasn't something that your intuition could see. What you need to do now is pull yourself together and lead what's left of our family. They need you to lead them now, more than ever. They're waiting for your orders and your command. We all are."

He stayed with her for a while, not saying anything and letting her stroke his hair in the meantime. The guilt was there still, as well as the grief, but he couldn't deny that she had made him calmer. She had always had that effect on him, been the one to calm his emotions on the rare occasions they fluctuated. Maybe that was one of the reasons he had picked her and loved her for so long. One of many he told himself.

Eventually, he was ready. He gave one last resigned sigh, slapped his knees and stood to his full height. Leaning over he gave Kyoko a quick peck on the forehead, lingering for a couple more seconds than was necessary just to take in the scent of her hair and the feel of the fine strands against his skin.

"I guess I need to go back to them now. They need someone to lead them…and I have to protect what's left," he said quietly, resisting the urge to catch his lip with his teeth.

Kyoko looked up at him, took his hand in hers and gave him a gentle but sad smile.

"Tsuna, this was not your fault. Not even you could have seen this coming. I won't tell you not to feel for this loss, but please don't torture yourself."

He didn't respond, _couldn't_ respond, no matter how much he willed an answer to form in his mouth. Instead he gave her what he thought was a sound nod and noted how her shoulder seemed to ease ever so slightly with the gesture. It comforted him to know she was reassured with his response, even though he knew all too well that his feelings hadn't changed. But he would pretend for her and would put on a brave face for those who were left.

Tsuna gathered his will, let go of Kyoko's hand and walked forward. It didn't take long for him to hear her soft tread follow behind him, which he was grateful for. Her mere presence was enough to keep him moving onward. It struck him suddenly how truly quiet her steps were as opposed to when someone else walked behind him. Gokudera's footsteps had always had a penchant for being loud, as opposed to Kyoko's fairy tread. It had always struck Tsuna as odd, how Gokudera seemed to make his footsteps louder than they should have been even though over the passage of years the man had quietened his personality significantly. Tsuna had even discussed it with Yamamoto once. He had wondered out loud how Gokudera, who often vanished or appeared without a sound, always stomped about behind him. Yamamoto, seeming to always have a theory as to why Gokudera did this or did that, simply chuckled wisely and threw an arm around his friend.

"Why should he sneak around family, you know? Besides, I think some part of Gokudera unconsciously wants to reassure you that he's there. Like he's always right behind you, or always there for you or something. You know how he gets with proving his loyalty and stuff. Eh, I guess I didn't explain it very well, sorry," the taller man had apologised, raking his fingers through his hair like he did whenever he was feeling particularly embarrassed.

Thinking back on it now, Yamamoto had probably been far closer to the truth than he admitted to being at the time. He had always known Gokudera best after all, and that hadn't changed despite the passing of years.

Now, as he walked through the forest and headed toward the clearing where the others were resting, Tsuna couldn't help but feel that the space behind him was far too quiet.

**~0~.~0~.~0~.**

A few moments later Tsuna strode back into the clearing, all hints of his previous grief hidden away firmly under lock and key. He'd show his sadness, of course, but he would never let his people know that it near consumed him; that the feelings of guilt were close to eating him up from the inside He had a duty to them now, to lead and not be led himself. He wouldn't let his anger and grief take over.

He watched from the corner of his eye as Kyoko headed to Haru's side as she helped bandage one of the men's wounds and sent a smile to the other girl when Haru gave him a shaky one of her own. He could tell that she was a bundle of nerves and was using the treatment of the other family members as a distraction. He swore to himself that he'd talk to her later when everything had settled a bit more. Her and anyone else that needed him to.

He coughed once to gain everyone's attention and all gazes suddenly turned on him as if in tandem. Tsuna saw clearly the pain in some eyes, the grief and hope in others and was near overwhelmed with fury at what had been done to his family. He coughed once more just to clear the knot that had formed in his throat and kept his clenched fists hidden deep in his pockets so no one saw the extent of his emotions. When he spoke he was glad that his voice came out stronger than he expected.

"Everyone, I'm sorry," he started, voice _nearly_ breaking as he bent his head and shoulders in a heartfelt bow, "I can't begin to understand why someone would do this to our family, why someone would choose this path of chaos. We've lost good men and women, friends and family to a monster. I understand if some choose not to follow me into this coming battle and I won't think any less of you for it; you'll always have a place here no matter which course you choose. But I'm telling you this, even if I fight this enemy by myself he'll feel every blow he dealt against us on his own person a thousandfold."

When he finished the clearing was silent of all but a few raspy breaths that carried on the wind. Tsuna raised his still bowed form and gave all he could a direct meeting of the eyes and a small smile. His gaze rested momentarily on Spanner, who still propped up against a felled tree managed to give him a salute and Irie who gave a stiff nod. Hibari, who stood a short distance away from the others stayed silent except for a small humph which was customary for him. Tsuna knew though that even if he didn't show it Hibari still felt slighted at Gokudera's capture from under his nose, especially since in their game of favours it had been Hibari's turn.

As no one spoke against his words Tsuna readied a few more, but before they left his mouth he heard something that made his stomach flip. One of his men, one he recognised from his reconnaissance division stood to his feet with some effort and spoke loudly.

"For Nobuyuki!"

His voice had broken on the name but his gesture still held strong, and Tsuna recognised it as a battle cry for the dead, injured and still unaccounted for.

Moments later more followed, one name after the other.

"Rosalia!"

"Kaname and Shibuki!"

"Niccolai!"

The names that followed were all familiar to Tsuna and he let a tear loose from his eye. There were no words to express how glad he was that his people stood by his side. He wiped his face clean and smiled at his family, the people who still followed him into the hell their world had become.

"Thank you," he whispered under his breath, feeling his lip tremble slightly as he did his best not to let his emotions overflow.

He stood to his full height of 5"7, still short compared to most of his guardians, but his presence was far more imposing. His aura stretched to heights his body didn't reach and for the first time in a while, Tsuna finally felt like they had the means to take that crucial step forward.

"For Hayato Gokudera," he added to the stream of names, glad when a number of voices echoed him.

Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his cell phone, still thankfully in exactly the same near pristine condition it had been since he purchased it the week before (after his last had suffered a fatal collision with the underside of a particularly enthusiastic sun guardian's shoe).

"Tsuna? What are you doing?" he heard Haru ask him curiously.

Tsuna spared her a small smile, though for some reason the young woman was certain she saw more than a little hesitance and anxiousness in that simple action. She wondered to herself why her friend seemed so nervous, but her answer came with his response.

"I need to contact Reborn. If I'm right, and this isn't over, then we'll need all the help we can get," Tsuna explained, his voice authoritative to begin with before descending into a weary tone, "Man, he isn't going to be happy that I cut his vacation short."

The remaining family members all watched as Tsuna tapped the screen on his cell and then brought the phone up to his ear. It seemed as though with every ring his face became paler and the people watching had to hide their astonishment that a man so strong and so authoritative would end up in such a state over a single phone call. Then again, the recipient was _Reborn _so it wasn't totally unreasonable. To the members who remembered Reborn in his infant-like state it had come as a bit of a shock to see him all 'grown up'. They had never thought that he could be so unbelievably…manly.

After the fourth ring there was a click on the other end and Tsuna unconsciously tensed. The silence that followed the click was unexpected but Tsuna figured that was just Reborn showing his displeasure at having his vacation interrupted.

"Reborn," the young leader started, taking care not to let any nervousness carry through his voice as he spoke, "We've been compromised. Initialise safety measure 37 and then get back here. I…Vongola needs you."

When he heard nothing further for a good half minute Tsuna began to worry about what was to come. But the dial tone that emerged a second later almost made him collapse to the floor with exasperation. Reborn had hung up on him without even uttering a word. He mumbled under his breath about 'lack of respect' and 'I'm probably going to pay for this later.'

A voice to his side broke him out of his musings and he turned to face the worried looking face of Irie. Tsuna dropped the phone back into his pocket and gave his friend his full attention.

"Tsuna, I know you're busy but I can't find Lambo anywhere," the man stated urgently, fingers brushing mechanically over a crack in the lens of his glasses.

Tsuna sighed and clapped a hand on his friends shoulder.

"Don't worry about Lambo. I figured this would happen. I know where he is," he explained with an almost deadpan manner.

It didn't take very long for the smart young man to catch on and his mouth formed an 'oh' before he replied.

"You mean?"

Tsuna, realising that Irie knew exactly what he meant nodded, another sigh emerging from his lips.

"He tagged along with Takeshi, Xanxus and Ryohei-nii. I doubt that anything I said could have stopped him from finding a way onto that plane. He's as stubborn as Hayato after all," he said with a certain resignedness.

"I'm not sure this is a goo…"

Tsuna interrupted him mid-sentence, feeling slightly guilty when he saw the other man tense.

"Neither do I," the Vongola leader admitted, "But whether I like it or not, Lambo is the thunder guardian and if he feels that this is something that he needs to do then I can't stop him. Gokudera is like a brother to him. I understand Lambo's need. Besides, Xanxus, Takeshi and Ryohei-nii will keep him safe. I know they will."

Tsuna could tell that the other man wasn't completely satisfied with his answer and while he thought of something to say to make him feel better about it Spanner's voice called for him from the distance.

"Oi Boss, another message came through. Gokudera again."

Without a seconds hesitation Tsuna raced to the mechanic's side, completely forgetting that he was in the middle of something.

"What? Let me see. Damn, Takeshi isn't here to decode the message," he cursed.

Gokudera had only started to teach him his code recently under Tsuna's request. The young leader had thought it would be especially useful to know the secret language for situations exactly like this one, but now he could only reprimand himself for leaving it for so long. He saw Spanner shake his head in dismissal, blond locks swaying from side to side with the action.

"Well, we don't really need it. As far as I can tell the message is pretty straightforward," the genius declared, taking the lollipop from his mouth and twirling it between his fingers

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Spanner popped the candy back in his mouth and turned the laptop to face his leader.

"Take a look."

Tsuna crouched down to rest on the toes of his feet and peered at the screen in front of him. Spanner had been right, the message that Gokudera had sent was clear as day; written out entirely in kanji.

"Huh? But that's…" Tsuna started confusedly.

He wasn't quite sure why Gokduera would send him such a thing at such a time. But then again, everything Gokudera had ever done served some purpose and if his right hand man thought that this was important then Tsuna would comply. The italian had never steered him wrong thus far.

"Yep, can't get any clearer than that. What are you going to do boss?" Spanner asking him, moving the lollipop in his mouth with his tongue, his eyes flitting over the message once more. Tsuna looked pensive as he tried to gather his thoughts, his hand resting under his chin and his mouth pursed. Spanner said nothing, opting instead to close his eyes and lean back against the tree he was up against. He didn't like to let it show, but he was still in considerable pain, his throat throbbing with every gulp of air he took. Despite all appearances though he cared for the people around him and he felt guilty for resting when there was probably something he could do to help. When Tsuna stood to his full height a moment later he peeked at him through one open eye, saw the fire had come back into his leaders eyes and smirked. 'That's better', he thought to himself, before finally resigning himself to the rest he was supposed to take.

"Haru, Irie, I have a job for the both of you."

Haru's perked up when she heard Tsuna's words a small grin flashing over her face. She practically jogged over to the Vongola leader, enthusiasm clear in her posture. She reminded Tsuna of an energetic dog, which he reprimanded himself for thinking a second later.

"Are you serious? You're actually letting me go into the field? It's about time Tsuna!" she squealed practically jumping up and down.

"Actually, since Spanner and Giannini are down for the count for now, I need you and Irie to do some research for me," Tsuna explained, outstretching his hand in the hope it would get Haru to stop flitting about, which thankfully it did.

"Eh, I'm fine. Leave it to me…" Spanner piped up from behind him, trying his hardest (but failing miserably) to push himself up from where he had practically melted against the tree.

"No," Tsuna shook his head, "I want you to rest and recover your strength, both you and Giannini. I need you at your best when we move forward. Please?"

Spanner sighed dejectedly while Giannini nodded his assent.

"Tch, fine. Have it your way. But, I'm not happy about this," the blonde moaned, pouting slightly as his body slumped in defeat.

Tsuna gave them an apologetic smile each before addressing Haru and Irie once more.

"Like I was saying Haru, Irie, I need you for this."

"What the? Is this really the time for that Tsuna? Research at a time like this?" she asked, arms crossed over her chest. Tsuna tried to ignore the fact that he could see blood staining her arm through a hole in her jacket. It didn't make him feel any better knowing that it wasn't actually her blood.

"Look, if it wasn't important I wouldn't have asked Haru," he stated wearily, rubbing his fingers over the crease in his forehead, "Hayato obviously thinks this is important enough to risk sending this request. Now, are you in or not?"

He watched the motions cross her face, the hesitance and the eagerness in clear competition. She probably wanted to do her part to help the family but was underwhelmed with the request. Haru had always been disappointed that she couldn't do more and even though she had trained diligently in hand to hand combat and weapons training over the years what she was actually able to do within the family was limited. More often than not she worked tirelessly in the Vongola infirmary or settled for the odd reconnaissance missions that were sent her way.

"Alright. Tell me what you need us to do," she relented eventually, realising that in the desperate times that fell on the Vongola family she couldn't afford to be picky about what kind of jobs she performed.

She watched intently as Tsuna bent over to take the laptop from Spanner.

"I need you to find someone for me. Here, take this," he said, handing over the small computer to Irie, "whoever they are this person is of interest to Hayato, which means they're a person of interest to us."

Haru and Irie glanced at the name on the screen, shared a look between them and nodded determinedly.

"Were on it. Leave it to us," Irie said confidently, gesturing Haru to follow after him.

The young woman gave Tsuna a small smile which he returned with his own before mouthing a 'thank you'.

Now that was taken care of Tsuna felt a weight sag on his shoulders for what was to come next. '_Now comes the hard part_' he thought to himself wearily. He turned away from the tired blonde behind him and caught Mukuro's amused eyes. For the entirety of Tsuna's conversation he had felt the mist guardian's gaze against his back and it annoyed him how the other man had managed to keep his composure as usual. Almost as if sensing Tsuna's disapproval of his attitude Mukuro smirked and chuckled under his breath.

"So, that leaves us with an important question doesn't it Tsunayoshi-kun. What do the rest of us do?" he enquired, voice sickly sweet but with an underlining condescension that always seemed to accompany his words.

Tsuna paid no heed to the tone of voice used but did reply to Mukuro's question. Fists clenched, brows furrowed and standing to his full height he responded with the voice of a leader - strong and authoritative.

"Us? We plan our counterattack."

TO BE CONTINUED

**So, let me know what you thought :)**

**Congratulations to those of you who guessed correctly that it was Reborn who popped up last chapter (wasn't hard lol). Now I wonder whose diary that excerpt from? (obvious again). I'm interested to hear what you think.**

**Until next time, thanks for reading :)**

**SFS x**


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